Personal Development Plans

January 15, 2010

Why You Must Set Goals to Improve your Self-Esteem

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What are goals and why do we need them. Goals are targets for you to reach, things for you to aim for, obstacles for you to overcome or a destination for you to reach. Why are they important? Read on and find out.

How can you reach a destination if you don’t know what or where it is. Imagine living in the USA and wanting to get to England but you have no idea where England is, you don’t even know that you need to take a boat or a plane to get there because you’ve never even heard of England before.

How hard would it be to reach this destination? I’d say near to impossible wouldn’t you? You may stumble on it through shear luck. Maybe you wondered into an airport one day and saw the flight information on the screen but the odds on this are slim to none. This is why goals are so important.

To have a real goal you must have a plan. You must know where you’re going, how you’re going to get there and most importantly why you want to reach the goal in the first place. We’ve already dealt with the first one, you can’t reach a destination if you don’t know where you’re going.

The only part we haven’t dealt with is how specific your goals need to be. ‘I want to make lots of money’ isn’t good enough. ‘I want to make 1 million dollars in the next five years’. Now that’s the type of goal you want to be setting. It’s specific, punchy and straight to the point.

Secondly you need a plan. This doesn’t need to be too specific at first as it will constantly change throughout the process of reaching your goal. It’s like a boat cruising across the open water. On it’s way to it’s destination it is off course about 90 percent of the time and it makes minuscule changes all the way to it’s final port. Just like you’ll make changes to your plan on the way to reaching your goal

You may even find that half way to reaching your goal the destination itself will change, either slightly or become an entirely different goal altogether.

Finally the most important part. You must know why you want to reach your goal. If you don’t know this, if you don’t have a strong enough reason for accomplishing your goal then your chances of success are greatly reduced. It needs to be a reason that only the thought of will elicit a strong emotional response.

Ideally you should have two reasons. One must involve all of the great things that will happen once you’ve achieved your goal, list all of these great things and give them a positive emotional strength. The other should involve all of the things that will happen if you don’t achieve your goal, give all of those bad things a negative emotional strength so when you think of what will happen if you fail it instantly motivates you succeed.

January 14, 2010

A Revolutionary Plan for Resolutions

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Even the language we use when describing our goals can set us up for failure. For 2009 are you resolving to never be late again; to always keep your office organized; to clean your entire house every week; or keep the weight off forever? Words like never, always, entire, every, and forever are strong words and make for lofty goals. The idea of making resolutions is not to defeat yourself before you begin, but language like the above can lead to quick failure. Let’s look at what some may consider to be a revolutionary plan for making resolutions. Realize that our successes come with small steps and consistent one day at a time endeavors. In fact, I like to view the entire month of January as a “ramp up” period for resolutions. My thoughts are that October through December people are just too overwhelmed to devote quality time to making resolutions. After New Year’s is over, we can sit down and decide what our goals are and how we can best make a plan for implementation. Here’s a week by week plan to help ensure success with your resolutions. January 1 – 7 Decide on up to six goals. If you’re making a list of more than six, you’re likely to look at your list and say, “Good grief, When will I have time to get to all of these?” After making the list, prioritize your list by deciding your top 3 and then your bottom 3. This doesn’t mean that the bottom 3 are not important., but there are probably some items that are more important than others. For example, losing weight, stopping smoking, or getting out of a dangerous relationship are health and safety concerns and become your first priorities. If your goal is to be honest, that too should be a priority as that is a moral issue. As Stephen Covey says: “Success is also relationships improved and higher character, competence, credibility, judgment, and influence. Success is change for the better.” Remember that it’s what’s important to you and your quality of life that we’re talking about here. Those around you will benefit from the positive changes in due time. So make your list, you have an entire week to decide on your goals and to prioritize them. One important factor is to be honest with yourself about whether or not you’re committed to making a change in the areas you’ve selected. If you’re not ready, again, you will only be inviting defeat. Take your time and enjoy this part of the resolution making process because next week will be a busy one. January 8 – 14 This is the week you want to look at how to best implement your resolutions. If you’ll need help with some, this is the week to conduct some research and find the best resources for help in achieving your goals. If stopping smoking is a goal, you may want to research various methods and/or doctors to help you in your quest. If your goal is to work out on a regular basis, then you might want to research the best programs and equipment for your lifestyle. Decide if you’re going to need to go to a gym, or find a partner to share your work out time. If you decide you have the will power to do it on your own, then you might decide if you’re going to work out to a video or find some place safe near your home or office to walk or run. Or you may already have equipment you’ve been using to hang clothes on that you can convert back to it’s original intended use. You may need to make a special place in your home for your equipment and work out time where you won’t be interrupted. This is also the week to decide how you’ll reward yourself for accomplishing your goals and when those rewards will be indulged. If losing weight is your goal, decide at what weight loss levels you’ll receive your reward. And, no, eating a whole lemon meringue pie is not a good choice for a reward. If you’ve decided to stop using profanity, the reward might be indulged in on a weekly basis and then stretched out over time as you become more successful at reaching your goal. This is also a good week to decide that you will not beat yourself up if failure occurs. Decide exactly what you’ll say to yourself to avoid using negative self-talk. This is important – write your positive affirmations down so you’ll remember them. You may want to post them somewhere so you can see them everyday. Stephen Covey conveys this idea more eloquently:

Week 15 – 21 Finally! This is the week you begin practicing your resolutions. You’ve already done a lot of prep work and your mind has been put on alert that changes are coming so there will be no shocking shifts to your mind, body or psyche. Each morning, before getting out of bed, think about your resolutions and your goal for each of them that day. Practice each resolution at every opportunity. At the end of the week take a look at what you have or haven’t accomplished. If rewards are in order – enjoy! Examine any roadblocks and how they might be eliminated for next week. Look at what changes might need to be made to make it easier to achieve your goals. There may be some tool you’ve discovered you require, you may decide that a buddy system for some goals is in order, or you may need to do some additional research. Remember, no negative self-talk. Find some way to encourage yourself to keep moving toward your dreams. Week 22 – 31 You should be well on your way to reaching your goals. This week you may introduce some new tools or research into your routine. Again keep preparing your mind each morning and continue practicing your resolutions at every opportunity. This week review your progress on a daily basis. Continue on for the next month with practice and review and you’ll be well on your way to success. Lessons From a Revolutionary It was Benjamin Franklin that first taught us that it only takes 21 days to achieve a new habit. So new behaviors can be achieved in a relatively short time by implementing and working the Revolutionary Plan for your Resolutions and Revolutionizing your life!

Happy New Year!!!

January 13, 2010

Success In Life Comes From P?rsonal Development-Desire

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Personal development is key if you want to be successful in anything in life or in anything you want to accomplish. The first step is to have that strong desire because everything starts with you thinking and having that burning desire to achieve whatever you like and want from life. Self-improvement is the first step by working on yourself then you will change to become whatever person you aspire to be. So first you need to identify the problem you are facing which can be lack of motivation for example and by doing so you are going through the first step of self-improvement. You need to analyze that and figure a way to overcome that by creating a definite plan which you will follow daily until you have achieve what you want which is to be a well motivated person that can attack anything he wants anytime and win!

Second is to build the desire you need to achieve you goals. To do so you must think of what you want in life and write it down on a piece of paper and read it every morning and night before you sleep. By doing so you are putting that thought into your mind to build that burning and strong desire in your mind and self to achieve it no matter what happens and that you will overcome every single obstacle that comes you way. There is a saying by Napoleon Hill that I want to quote which goes like this “A thought backed up by a burning desire has a tendency of transmuting itself into its physical equivalent.” That means whatever you think and program into your head and with that you have the strong desire to back it up you can make it a reality!

Those are the few main steps to success that you should follow if you are looking and wanting to change your life for the best. There are many more tips and secrets to come so stay in touch.

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January 11, 2010

The Secrets of Goal Setting and Personal Success

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What is personal success? Personal success occurs when we make the right decision at the right time. Most of us have an idea of the type of person we would like to be. However, few of us take the time to turn this into a reality. A lack of perspective is often the biggest reason for this. People tend to take their lives for granted. This is a shame when we think about the good we can do for our lives.

Having a goal is so important. It injects a sense of purpose and meaning into our lives. You may already have a broad idea of a goal you would like to achieve. If this is the case, then now is the point to turn it into something specific. For instance, if you are looking to lose weight think about how much weight you would like to lose and in what time. The brain works best when it receives clear instructions. If you were asked to do something vague by your boss at work you would ask them to clarify what they mean. A specific goal is a clear instruction.  

A measure of self awareness is essential in critical decision making. If we do not feel in control of ourselves, then how can we expect to take control over our own destiny and circumstance?  A extreme amount of self awareness can be detrimental. It can cause us to be too fearful of the consequence of tasking action. In addition, what we shall call ‘extreme self awareness’  can lead us to being overly judgemental of our experiences and actions. So how do we get the balance right? Well fortunately help is at hand.

Self awareness is the key to taking the correct initiative. We are confident and honest with ourselves. That way we will take action that is balanced between knowledge and a desire to get things done. Rash decision making  should be replaced with calm rational and decisive  action.  The difference between success and failure can be made in a snap decision.  By being self aware you are conscious of your own skills and your limitations. It is important to not confuse confidence with arrogance. If you are planning a new business venture make sure you have done as much research as possible. Make your goal a calculated risk.

Ignorance is the enemy of success. What is even worse than ignorance is self enforced ignorance. This is self induced ignorance brought about by a reluctance to challenge existing knowledge and look for alternatives. Being able to find an alternative solution to a problem is what creates innovation and competition. Without this key asset we wouldn’t have different companies or products. This is why you must maintain an open mind combined with self awareness to get your goal setting spot on.

There are unhelpful character traits that will inhibit a successful outcome to initiative taking. One of the first things you need to eliminate is procrastination. If you are the sort of person who says ‘it can wait till next week ‘frequently then this applies to you.  The reason why this is so important is that your mind set directly effects your behaviour and daily habits. Even being lazy towards somewhat trivial things in a business can have a corrosive effect on your overall attitude.

Taking control of your life is the key to securing long term success. Regardless of whether we were born rich or poor we all have the ability to manage our lives in a way to ensures we reach our true potential . The refrain ‘It was due to circumstances beyond my control’ is a commonly used excuse among people.  The problem with excuses such as these is that they are defeatist. Rather than getting us to look for solutions to our problems, they encourage us to accept our fate as if we were helpless.  The most successful people are not only able to triumph over adversity but are able to draw strength from it. Personal development will help you to become like this sort of person.

January 10, 2010

How to Use Self-Development Exercises To Achieve Success

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Everyone wants to be as successful as they can be both in their professional and personal lives. How to achieve those lofty goals, however, is the subject of some debate. One of the proven methods for achieving personal growth and career success is the use of various self-development exercises.

There are a number of different self-development methods around, and which one works best will depend on a number of factors, such as your own personality, your own strengths and of course your personal and professional development goals.

One of the best ways to use self-development is to use it to prioritize your professional and personal goals. Since it is impossible to do everything, it is important to make a list of the things that are most important to, in terms of both your career and your personal life. Knowing what your goals are is of course the first step toward realizing those goals. It is vital that you know what is most important to you is an extremely valuable part of the self-development process.

If you need help getting started on your self-development project, there are certainly a great many resources available. Your local bookstore probably has shelves full of books devoted to self-development and self improvement, and these subjects are covered in a number of magazine articles as well.

In addition, the Internet provides a wealth of self-development as well. There are an enormous number of web sites, newsgroups and discussion areas available focusing on all aspects of career development, personal growth, achievement,, success and self-development. These web sites can be quite valuable when trying to determine just which approach will work best for you.

It may be a good idea to record your self-development goals in written form. Having a written document, no matter how informal, can be a big help in achieving your goals. Simply seeing your self-development written in this way can spur you to action, and help you see the big picture of what you are trying to achieve. After all, self-development is a big part of success, but it is hard work as well.

Understanding that self-development is hard work, and that it can be a long process, is important to achieving success. It is best not to think of self-development as a goal in and of itself. Rather, self-development is a means to be used to achieve your goals of greater success and a more fulfilling personal and professional life. Once you understand the ultimate goal of your self-development exercises you will be in a much better position to make your goals and dreams come true.

No matter what area you choose to focus your self-development on, it is important to work at it consistently, and to persevere. Self-development is not a single goal; it is more of a journey than a destination. Once you have decided on your specific goals, and addressed the best ways to achieve your goals, your self-development plan can start in earnest.

Why the development of self –awareness is vital to obtain personal growth

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It is vital to our well being to have goals in life. Having a fixed goal like losing weight or quitting smoking is great. However, many people feel dissatisfaction when they fail to obtain their goals. Therefore, it is important to consider what is occurring in our mind.  This can be achieved by standing back and looking at ourselves objectively.

We can strive to overcome dissatisfaction by adopting a holistic approach. This approach takes both our mind and our body into consideration. A person’s emotional processes, attitudes and values, beliefs and motivations are interconnected.  Personal development can nurture the positive aspect of you to grow. In addition, it can discourage the less savoury aspects of our personality.  It can therefore be used to improve our general well being.

Let’s look at a hypothetical situation. Imagine that you have decided to lose weight. Your goal is to lose two and a half a stone in six months.  However, you are only able to loss two stone.  You feel disconsolate. However, the process has made more driven and more motivated. You have higher levels of concentration and a more committed character. In short, you have become exactly the sort of person many others aspire to be despite not reaching your goal.

There are other benefits from undertaking the journey of personal development.  Many people are dissatisfied because they have failed to reach to level of achievement they want to obtain.  The feeling of dissatisfaction is the first stage of self awareness. It is self awareness that helps to form the cornerstone of personal development.

What do I mean by this? Well, if you learn to know yourself, you learn to understand yourself. Once you understand yourself, you can take action to correct any areas of dissatisfaction.  It is like going on a voyage of self discovery. You return from the voyage as a wiser and more confident individual. The major benefit of self-awareness is that it reveals what you are capable of.

Few people truly understand the importance of self –awareness.  Once you have developed it, you can plan the way you tackle goals more effectively.  Self-awareness is about mastering growth and development. Developing a heightened sense of self-awareness through introspection and honest self- appraisal is one of the single most important things you can do in your life.

Conquering general dissatisfaction can seem difficult at times.  However, setbacks are an important part of growth and development.  Learning to deal with setbacks can only help to make you a stronger person. We all have good days and bad days. Make the following promise to yourself.  No matter how dissatisfied you feel now life is only going to get better.  Make a fresh start every day and you will be one step closer to achieving your goals. 

January 5, 2010

The Mythology of Self Hypnosis

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Many people have very damaging, destructive beliefs about self hypnosis. They believe that self hypnosis is dangerous or can be misused or abused by others. Many hold beliefs such as: Only messed-up people use self hypnosis! The people who need self hypnosis are emotionally insecure! Self hypnosis users have a lot of issues! These beliefs can stop you from using the power of self hypnosis to change your life, your destiny and your fortunes. What’s more, they are all totally untrue!
The vast majority of people who use self hypnosis are not dysfunctional crazies but in fact normal well-adjusted individuals who have been trying to secure change in their lives but have been unable to affect this change through conventional means. The many hundreds of self hypnosis applications and its very high success rate mean that this form of therapy, or mind programming, has become more popular over the years than any other self improvement tool.
Every one of us has some issue, or issues, in our lives that we would like to improve. Unfortunately historical ways of dealing with such things seldom produce satisfactory results. Even those that do produce positive long-term results take months, if not years, to implement. A good example of this is psychotherapy which is expensive, time-consuming, and often, fails to produce the measurable results desired.
AQs well as having a very high success rate there is an additional reason for utilizing the power of self hypnosis. As a tool for internal and external change it is by far the fastest method available today.
Self hypnosis can secure change rapidly because it gives you the ability to communicate directly with the subconscious mind and influence change at this very deep level of behaviourism.
By far the most common application of self hypnosis, as a self improvement tool, is to secure changes in behaviour. For example a great many self hypnosis practitioners begin their hypnotic journeys wanting to eliminate negative behaviours such as smoking or over-eating!
Even though there are many more applications of self hypnosis, behaviour modification is the most popular to date. Only after initial success do self hypnosis users start to venture into the truly remarkable and wonders uses of this powerful mind tool.
Although eliminating unwanted behaviours seems to be the primary use of self hypnosis today it should be noted that as a goal-achievement tool it is priceless. When self hypnosis has been used as part of a goal-setting/goal-achievement plan its success rate has been amazing. By using sophisticated sound technologies, within a carefully guided session, it is possible to coerce the brain into a certain state that produces specific mind/body altering brainwaves which give direct access to the subconscious mind. The most common brainwave state entered into during a self hypnosis session is the Alpha state. While emmersed in this mental state you become very open to suggestion and it is therefore very easy to influence the subconscious mind.
As the subconscious mind is responsible for our memories and automatic behaviours and feelings we can ensure that our automatic responses are the way we want them to be merely by programming the subconscious mind.
For instance, if you are a procrastinator when it comes to house-work or study then it is merely a matter of using the hypnotic state to access the subconscious mind. Once a connection to this deeper level of mind has been made, you can use clever self hypnosis techniques to program in automatic behaviour that ensures you never procrastinate with these jobs again. It is, in fact, possible to even program yourself into enjoying the tasks!
Likewise, you can also program into your subconscious mind, using the latest break-through techniques in self hypnosis, automatic behaviours, thoughts and feelings that help you to achieve your goals rather than those you may currently have that hinder your progress. Much research into the thoughts, emotional make-up and automatic behaviours of highly successful people have led to self hypnosis programs being made that incorporate the programming of these behaviours into the self hypnosis recording.
This has led to the creation of self hypnosis sessions that can be used to program your mind with the sae thought processes, emotional responses and behaviours of millionaires, top achievers and Olypic athletes. In fact, self hypnosis can be, and has been, used to program the mind for success in every area imaginable. So don’t you think it’s time you stop believing in myths and gave it a try?

January 3, 2010

Setting Your Personal Goals

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In my conversations with hundreds of top business people over the years, I have found that they all have one thing in common. They have taken the time to sit down and create a clear blueprint for themselves and their future lives. So many have said that they started the process of goal setting and personal strategic planning with more than a little skepticism. As their success have increased so too has every one of them has become a true believer in the process. Everyone has a process. It is not a hit and miss sit down and throw out a few nice sounding goals and moving on!
Every one has been amazed at the incredible power of goal setting and strategic planning. Every one of them has accomplished far more than they ever believed possible and they ascribe their success to the deliberate process of thinking through every aspect of their work and their lives, their successes and struggles, their motivators, values and beliefs, and then developing a detailed, written road map to get them to where they wanted to go.
It is not that hard to believe and so many people do not do it because they have no idea on what to do and how to go about developing goals.
The Definition of Happiness
Happiness has been defined as, -The progressive achievement of a worthy ideal, or goal- When you are working progressively, step-by-step toward something that is important to you, you generate within yourself a continuous feeling of success and achievement.
You feel more positive and motivated. You feel more in control of your own life. You feel happier and more fulfilled. You feel like a winner, and you soon develop the psychological momentum that enables you to overcome obstacles and plow through adversity as you move toward achieving the goals that are most important to you.
Determine Your Values
Personal strategic planning begins with your determining what it is you believe in and stand for as your values. Your values lie at the very core of everything you are as a human being. Your values are the unifying principles and core beliefs of your personality and your character. The virtues and qualities that you stand for are what constitute the person you have become from the beginning of your life to this moment.
Your values, virtues and inner beliefs are the axle around which the wheel of your life turns. All improvement in your life begins with you clarifying your true values and then committing yourself to live consistent with them.
Fuzzy or Clear?
Successful people are successful because they are very clear about their values. Unsuccessful people are fuzzy or unsure. Complete failures have no real values at all.
When you take the time to think through your fundamental values, and then commit yourself to living your life consistent with them, you feel a surge of mental strength and well-being. You feel stronger and more capable. You feel more centered in the universe and more competent of accomplishing the goals you set for yourself.
Action Exercises
Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas into action.
First, decide for yourself what roles you have in your life and then organize your life around them. Pick one to highlight this coming year, for even greater success. Write down your goals around these roles and make plans to achieve them. Have fun.
Second, begin with your values by deciding what it is you stand for and believe in. Commit yourself to live consistent with your inner most convictions and you will never make another mistake.
Ask and answer 10 simple questions about your last year and let the answers guide you to a great year ahead.
What worked?
What failed?
What did I learn from both success and failure
What is my paradigm or belief?
What are my Values
What roles do I have in life?
Which would I like to work on next year?
Set 2 -5 goals for each role
Look them over and select just 10
Make a plan for achieving each one – simple Action Plans will do
Now work them..
Have a great year.

December 25, 2009

Personal Development: Tips For Living Life With Passion!

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We all want to lead full, happy lives…so why is it that so few of us do?

If it’s time you took a good look at your own life and gave it an overhaul, don’t wait another minute. Whether we like to admit it or not, the clock is ticking for each of us. Make each moment count by actually putting into place the practices which will bring you joy and rekindle the passion in your life.

This has nothing to do with anyone else – it’s all about YOU! Following are some tips to help you make the most of each day and ensure you are living your life to the fullest. While they may not sound positive and easy, this is all about being effective. These few key areas are where you can put new practices into place and give yourself the gift of a happier, more satisfying life.

GOALS: The trick here is to make them YOURS. Not what your Mom wants, nor what your guidance counselor told you was right for you…but what YOU want. Have you even thought about this lately? Many people have not thought about what they truly want in years. This is partially due to the vague notion that many carry around that says ’some day I’ll have more time to figure it out and then I’ll get what I want’. This is NOT how it works…some day is NOW. Tomorrow will never come, and our time here is limited. You can either choose for this to be a depressing thought and turn away from it, or face it straight on and FREE YOURSELF. Today is all we have – live it up! Dream with passion! PLAN to do things you love and which are fun…there is no time like the present!

PRIORITIES: In these busy times, it is time we realize that we cannot do it all. We can create everything we want, but the fact remains that we only have 24 hours in a day, and there will simply be things that slip through the cracks. Therefore, the more we hone our focus and decide what our priorities are, the better we can live each day from that focus, and accomplish more of the things that matter to us as individuals.

This is not goal-setting. Goals ARISE from this work, and allow you to accomplish those things that you wish to. Rather, this allows us to live each day with a strong sense of purpose, aliveness and joy.

The trick to living this way is two-fold: the first is to invest the time to look at your life overall and decide what you want it to be about. A good way to think about this is to look at the end of your life. Ask yourself what you will regret most if you don’t change it? What do you want said about you when you’re gone? What kind of a legacy would you like to leave? What will you wish you had done?

The second part ties your priorities and your goals together. The best two tips in this area I have heard in years are extremely simple: 1) Make a list every night of the five things you must accomplish tomorrow, and then DO THEM tomorrow, in the order of those you want to do least first. 2) Ask yourself each day: What can I do today that I’ll be glad I did tomorrow? This one step is amazingly powerful, as you will see after a few days.

VISION: How many times have you heard that you must visualize what you want in order to get it? Did you know that in studies with Olympic-caliber athletes, tests have shown that they performed just as well after visualizing themselves going through the motions with precision, as when they actually practiced physically?

Additionally, in brain and muscle tests, all the same neurons in the brain and muscle fibers in the body were activated during intense visualization as during the actual athletic endeavor. Amazing? YES!

Use this to your advantage in your own life! Practice and improve your ability to clearly and precisely picture yourself being in the situations you wish to create. Make use of guided meditations, visualization techniques, and whatever you find helpful in creating and maintaining a clear vision of what you want.

HEALTH: This has been addressed in many places, but my two best tips are:

Eat less, and more often. Studies have shown that those who eat less actually survive longer, and with this happy, passionate life you are building you’ll want to prolong it as much as you can! Also, eating smaller amounts every 3-4 hours serves to boost your meatabolism and burn more fat…helping you to be healthier and have more energy. Think of your metabolism like a fire…consistently feed it in little amounts. If you starve it or smother it, the results will be less to your liking.

The second tip is to get moving, and do it consistently. This one thing, if you are not already doing it, will make a huge difference for you. Go for walks, take up new sports – do whatever you have to do to stay active, and enjoy increased energy and stamina, as well as more clarity in your thoughts.

ROLE MODELS: Get some new ones. Look for people and situations which empower you, and remind you of the magnificence of the human spirit and what is possible. This lifts you out of your narrow, everyday focus, and gives you a broader perspective.

There you have it…a few key ingredients to living a life with passion! Of course there are many more things you can do, however the fundamentals need to be put in place for people to really feel energy, passion, happiness, and a sense of purpose.

Enjoy, and go create your dreams!

December 24, 2009

Building Personal Leadership – Planning Needed

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The Perfect Time for Planning: December is the perfect time to review your year’s goals and accomplishments noting the progress you have made. It is also the perfect time to fine tune your Vision, Purpose, Mission, Values and create a Goal Plan for the coming New Year. This article will describe how you can accomplish this important activity.
Why Have Vision, Purpose, Mission, and Value Statements: When a person knows their destination in life (Vision), why they are living (Purpose), how they are best serving (Mission), and precisely what they Value, then they are equipped with the knowledge and guidance to say YES or NO to the many things that come into their lives. Living congruently with your Vision, Purpose, Mission, and Values (VPMVs) is rewarding and brings inner peace, happiness, and joy to your life. But first, you need to know your VPMVs!
Your Vision: Vision is a vivid picture of where you want to go in your life. It’s your ideal destination. Most people just react to life events and let other people tell them what to do. They have no clear idea of what they desire or how far they can grow and develop. They don’t take responsibility for the quality of their lives and blame their situations on events and circumstances outside themselves. With a clear vivid vision, people know what they desire, want to create, and they are deciding and choosing to take actions to achieve the life they want.
Choose a time in the future – one, three, five, 10, or 20 years in the future, and imagine what the ideal life would be like. Write a detailed and vivid description of that ideal life. Fill your description with emotion and inspirational words that will motivate you and act as a beacon to guide you in the creation of what you want. After writing your description, distill it into a written statement that you can remember (one or two sentences at the most). You will be using this statement of your vision to guide your decisions and choices in life. With a clear direction to travel, you will be guided in your path as if you had a compass to show you the way.
Your Purpose: Your arrival on this earth is not some coincidence. Your purpose for existing is not to consume resources in pursuit of indulgences with no meaning. You came into this world to fulfill some very unique and important purpose or purposes. Identifying that purpose and conducting your mission within that purpose can bring you great satisfaction, joy, and happiness. Working and living “on purpose” becomes seamless as the time flies by with total immersion in your “on purpose” activities. What are you passionate about? What contribution to the world do you naturally love to make? What is your purpose for living and working on this earth? Why are you here?
Find a quiet place where you will be undisturbed. Let your mind dwell on the subject of purpose. Ask yourself the question, “Why am I here?” Immediately after asking that question, write your first thought(s) on a piece of paper. Continue asking the same question and recording your initial thoughts until you have exhausted all possible answers. Examine your recorded thoughts for some common theme that answers your question. Capture that theme in a statement of your purpose. As time passes, your purpose may evolve.
Your Mission: Your mission describes your labor, what you do both in work and life. It involves using your natural skills, strengths, and competencies. Your mission is where you will be able to perform your best work tirelessly with great energy, meaning, joy, and satisfaction. What is your mission?
Mission statements are made up of four parts. They are:
Who you are? (I am a unique person of greatness and unlimited potential)
What are your major roles? (i.e. son or daughter, husband or wife, father or mother, business leader, provider for your family, etc.)
What services do you provide in each of your roles? (i.e. respect & love, companionship, nurturing and education, coaching and feedback, secure financial planning, supervision, labor, etc.)
To what standard do you provide your services? (excellence, etc.)
Jot down your answers to the questions using unbounded brainstorming techniques. Identify common themes and combine into phrases. Combine your phrases into a sentence or two and polish to create your unique mission statement. As with purpose, your mission may change and evolve with time.
Your Values: Values are guides to your thinking, behavior, actions, and results. Values act as boundaries to conducting your mission, living on purpose, and traveling toward your vision. Therefore, identifying your guiding values can be quite valuable in your life journey.
As you develop into and through adulthood you learn to value certain objects, relationships, characteristics, and concepts. It is natural to find yourself learning to value hundreds of “things.” However, hundreds of valued things can’t act as guides.
Brainstorm and write on a piece of paper all the things you value. Include ideals or which you are aware and characteristics you admire in leaders, friends, and people. With your complete list, look for common themes or ways to combine items into similar groups. For instance, keeping commitments could be grouped with integrity. Continue the combining process until you feel that you have identified your foundational values. The number of values and wording should be such that you can instantly recall what they are. After identifying your values, you can begin to consciously use them in your work and life. As they are used and you think more about your values, you may want to repeat this exercise or refine your current list. Over time you will become sure of your foundational values and know what they are.
Dream Again – Goal Planning: Most people I know work many hours, have a family to raise, and other obligations that consume most if not all of their time and lives. Dreams they once had are placed on the back burner, so long ago, that they can’t be remembered today. It’s time to pause, reflect, resurrect, and record anew those dreams. Take time to crystallize your dreams so you may create the future you want. If you don’t dream, you won’t have a future, at least the future you desire and wish to create.
Find a quiet place where you can relax and just let your thoughts travel back into the past and forward into your future. What are all the things you want to learn, become, do, visit, own, feel, interact with, and impact. Take 3 X 5 cards and write one item on each new card. Let your imagination run wild with no limitations, especially financial costs. Write them down as you dream them one to a card.
John Goddard did this when he was 15 and created a list of 127 adventures he wanted to experience. Type 60 words a minute, milk a rattlesnake, travel the Amazon river, climb Mt. Everest, go into space, hold his breath under water for 3 minutes. John Goddard has accomplished 109 of his dreams. He is a very happy man.
Take your cards (goals) and sort them into the following three piles: Must do, Like to do, Will do if time permits. Then prioritize each pile and combine them Must do on top, Like to do next, and then Will do if time permits. You now have a priority list of your dreams that become your life goals. Take the top two or three dreams / goals, plan their accomplishment, and start taking actions to manifest them. When you feel comfortable with your progress and have time, activate the next priority dream / goal on your prioritized list and repeat the process. Do this each New Year and you will never run out of adventures!
If You Do Nothing Else! I challenge you to take out a pen right now and write down three goals that if you accomplished them in 2007 would make it the best year ever. The hard part is making up your mind, the rest is just work! Make up your mind now, make the commitment, and take the first step toward realizing one of your goals.

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