By Michael Gidlewski

Last week, we talked about the power of planning for your ideal future, rather than living your life by default or on autopilot.

We are living in busy times, so we better be really focused on what is most significant and important in our lives, so we can pay attention to those goals and say no to everything that is trying to derail us.

We all only have 168 hours per week to accomplish what we want to do, and it seems like everyone I talk to could use more time, but that isn’t going to happen.

That is why we need to slow down to go faster. Every time I have a computer problem, the first question the tech guide always asks me is “Did you reboot your computer?” My question to you is “When was the last time you stopped to reboot your life?”

C.S. Lewis said, “You are never too old to set a new goal or dream a new dream.” So, as we look forward to the new year, we should take time to review our goals program and create a blueprint for future success. An honest evaluation of the past is the first step toward a vision for the future.

It is important for us to evaluate last year’s goals. By doing this we are able to see a number of things, including whether or not we achieved them; whether we tend to shoot too high or too low in our goals; whether we have the tenacity to pursue many goals at once; and what areas we did well in and why. All of this will enable us to make better, more realistic, and achievable goals for the coming year.

The first thing we want to do is review last year. What were my accomplishments, challenges, learnings? The next thing we want to do is review our wheel of well-being to see if we are riding down the highway of life with balanced tires or if we need a wheel alignment.

We identify the six most critical and important aspects of your life, the six pillars of your life that are seriously important to your success in the wheel:

• Family and Home
• Spiritual and Ethical
• Physical and Health
• Social and Cultural
• Learning and Intellectual
• Financial and Career

In each of these areas, you want to develop a crystal-clear vision of where you are going. Describe the life you’d really like to live. What’s possible? What does it look like when you’re living up to your best expectations in each of these areas? Describe as best you can what it looks like and what it feels like when you have reached the point in each of your key result areas where you are happy with each. Write in the present tense, as if it is already in place. This represents a picture of your future as you prefer it to be.

If you can articulate a clear vision of your preferred and desired future, focusing on those areas that are important to you, that vision becomes like the picture on the lid of your life’s jigsaw puzzle. That clear vision allows you to set goals in the direction of your preferred future. That vision provides motivation, energy, purpose, and direction. It certainly helps you to communicate with the people around you.

Many people continuously work on personal tasks that are leading nowhere. I believe Thoreau could have been referring to those people when he wrote: “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.”

Many others have made financial objectives their sole concern and have paid a heavy price for their success – poor health, failed marriages, neglected friendships, no personal development in any area, except business. By developing and pursuing your own personal strategic plan, you will increase your energy, motivation, and your sense of satisfaction. It’s your choice to make. Most people are as happy as they choose to be.

Are you up for the challenge? If so, join us for a game-changing workshop entitled “Blueprint for Success, Growth, and Prosperity” on Wednesday, Dec. 4 from 8 AM-12:30 PM at Penn State Great Valley. Take a half-day to ensure that you have an exceptional year next year, as this powerful workshop will illuminate your desire to succeed, both personally and professionally.

Michael Gidlewski is President of West Chester-based Achievement Unlimited, Inc., as well as a growth catalyst and motivational speaker. He works with motivated business owners and entrepreneurs to clearly define the elements of what they dearly want their businesses and lives to look like, then helps them connect all the moving parts that make up those visions to consistent action and habits. Michael can be reached at 610-793-6609 or via e-mail at michael@achievable.com.