The first six months of the year 2013 proved to be some of the most insightful and life altering thanks to my business / life coach.
Though, out of all the advice that was given, there was one characteristic in her that to this day, I have kept with me. (This is also a characteristic I've noticed among other high performers and I truly believe it is a major contributing factor to their success.)
If you want to be a better you, BE OBJECTIVE.
Simple right?… NOT.
What's crazy is that even though it's simplistic, we tend to avoid it at all costs. Just like Plato's work, the "Allegory of the Cave".. at times going towards the light can be quite painful. And this is exactly how it can be when we force ourselves to be objective with our lives.
Goal Setting
When was the last time you said; "I want to lose weight? travel the world? apply for my dream job? start a business?" The problem is so many of us have aspiring goals and dreams but we never take the time to look at them objectively, and create a plan in how to best reach them.
One goal in particular for Create the Bridge has always been to work with startups. The funny thing was that, in my mind, (read about invisible scripts, LIFE CHANGING!) I'd always say we wouldn't be able to work with them until we moved to a city where more startups were located.
Until I had an epiphany. I was sitting at my desk and I asked myself; “Is there any reason why Create the Bridge can't work with startups right now, today?” The answer was clearly, NO!
The truth was I had not considered making a plan and I had not given myself the time and energy to define my goal further. I knew I had to develop a plan of action and best
way to do this was to think objectively and be specific.
FOR EXAMPLE: I WANT TO WORK WITH STARTUPS.
DEFINE: WHICH STARTUPS?
I originally wanted to work with startups surrounding the Austin,TX area. Then, I did a google search looking for startup communities in Austin. I created a list of the names of the startups.
Once I knew which startups I wanted to work with the next question was: Who is the contact person? And what's the best way to reach them?
I got online and found the contact information of each decision maker. Then, I decided the best method in reaching them would be email. Knowing this I told myself I would write 10 tailored email to each individual specifically targeting their needs every Monday of the week. (Of course, sending only 10 emails per week is rather minimal, but considering my other duties, 10 would be doable.)
Notice how I got real specific with that? All the way down to what day and how many emails I would send. This is exactly what needs to be done for every single goal. (I could even specify a time of day.)
Be Objective
All you have to do is be specific and objective. That will help you develop a plan of action that will be easy to follow. Most importantly, it'll be a plan that you created, and simply because YOU created it, the chances you'll follow it are substantially higher inverse to being told you what to do external factors; self-realization. (Shrinks do this all the time and in their practice mention it as the single most important factor in the development of an individual.)
If you want to lose weight, be specific and define how many pounds you want to lose. What you want to eat. How many days you'll work out? At what time? Etc..
Want to travel the world for a full year!? Ask yourself, where you'd want to go and how long you'd like to stay there. Where would you stay? How much would it cost? The cost between travel options? Cost of food? Once you know the cost you can make a plan of how best to fund yourself and make your trip possible.
This advice was of great use to me and I hope you'll find it usefull.