7 Steps to Accomplish 92%+ of Your Top Priorities

Have a lot to accomplish?

Want to accomplish 92%+ of your top priorities?

Here’s how.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Step 1: Know Your Mission

Action: Define Your Mission. Find the patterns from past experiences where you felt a great sense of purpose. Describe in writing your experience and what you got from your experience. Do so for 8 of such experiences. Select the words that are key for you. Make the words into a sentence that begins “My purpose is …” or “Our Mission is…” Post your purpose where you see it everyday.

Step 2: Know Your Visions

Action: Create my Visions. First, identify the areas of focus for your organization or your life. For example, for your organization, you might choose areas like those in the Business Wheel. For your life, you might use areas like those in the Wheel of Life. Or pick words to describe your areas based on what makes sense to you. It’s your organization. It’s your life. What matters is what the words mean for you. Second, now that you know your areas of focus, write a Vision for what you want each area to look like, sound like, and feel like when you are on mission.

Step 3: Generate Possibilities

Action. Generate Possibilities. With your Vision for each focus area in front of you, generate at least 10 possible steps that would move someone – anyone, not just you – in the direction of making real this Vision. Invite at least one other person to assist you in generating additional ideas.

Step 4: Make Annual Choices

Action. Choose your Annual Choices. First, create a table with 3 columns. In the left-hand column, list the Focus Areas you identified in Step 2 in the order of importance during this specific 12-month period. This order may be different from the general importance to you, depending on what is happening during this specific 12-months. Title the column Focus Area. Title the second column Complete? As you accomplish items, check them off in this column. Then create a third column and mark it Key Result. In the Key Result column identify the specific, measurable, attainable, positive, personal, present tense ways you commit to move in the direction of making your Vision for that focus area real during this specific time period.

Step 5: Plan Routinely.

Action. Make your Action Plan. First, take out your calendar and schedule routine time – every, 1, 2, 3, or 4 weeks – for the next 12 months when you can do your routine planning. Allow 30-60 minutes. Note that this is a maximum of 1 hour a week and possible as little as 6 hours over the next 6 months. Next, keep your commitment to yourself. Then, when you sit down, create your Action Plan. Look at the results you want to accomplish during this 12 months. Given your desired results, write down the next action steps, the ones you can do or be right this minute, that keep you moving in the direction of accomplishing what you want, that you commit to accomplish between the date of this planning time and your next planning time. For example, if today is January 14 and you have planning time every 2 weeks, write down the steps you commit to take between January 14 and January 28. Check that the results you write are positive, personal, present tense, specific/measurable, and attainable.

Now that you have good Key Results, take that next action step. Keep identifying and taking those next action steps.

Step 6: Identify What Works

Action. Write down your guidelines. Each time you sit down to plan, check off the results you’ve accomplished, both on your regular planning list and on your Annual list. In considering each item, write down what makes you successful at accomplishing what you want. Create micro guidelines that apply to that specific situation and macro guidelines that apply to your life generally. We learn what steps increase our success and well-being from considering and then writing down what makes us successful.

Step 7: Repeat

Action. Repeat to Create Habit. Repeat these 7 steps until you act the way you want without thinking. Be patient and allow the time to create the habits you want. Use understanding to feel compassion for yourself as you learn.

Caution. Or – A Word of Encouragement.

You will encounter times when nothing goes as planned. Accept the dip. Be grateful for the time to mentally and physically adjust to the change you have chosen. Relax and know that the dip will pass.

Want to Know More? Read on…

7 Steps to 92%+

Have a lot to accomplish? Here’s how.

You have a quite a bit on your plate. What you want to accomplish is important. Yet somehow you get caught up in the day to day and find yourself without time for what matters most to you. Why trudge along in a job that is o.k., live with relationships that are fine, or just get by? Why wait for pain to exceed tolerance to make a change?

So often times it happens 

That we live our lives in chains 

And we never even know

We have the key.

Eagles, Already Gone

There is another way. Instead of slowly destroying pieces of ourselves, we can live our lives like we drive our cars. As drivers, we get in our car with our destination in mind. We then make minute course corrections as we drive so as to stay on track, rather than driving in a straight line until we run off the road. In life, we can identify the outcomes we want before we take action so we accurately select those actions that lead to our destination. As we take action, we can learn what works for us and apply what we learn to make adjustments as we go and get where we want to be. In this way, we notice earlier when we are headed off track, and make timely changes that keep us on track. We create consistent satisfaction.

Here are 7 Steps that, when followed consistently, get us to our desired destination. You, too, can accomplish 92%+ of your top priorities.

Step 1: Know Your Mission

Do you think of knowing your “mission” or “purpose” as a luxury permitted only after basic needs are met – or exceeded? Or is it a fundamental human need?

What is so important about Mission? You know. You know because you have experienced those moments when you felt that you were exactly where you were meant to be, doing exactly what you were supposed to be doing, while feeling a tremendous sense of satisfaction and fulfillment. You were on mission. I don’t know what your mission is, and no one else can tell you it, either. You are unique. Not terminally unique, but unique in that you have a one-of-a-kind set of skills and experiences. Why mess around? Why not use those skills for what brings satisfaction and fulfillment to you? Begin your journey in the right direction. Time’s a’ ticking.

Step 2: Know Your Visions

Some people use external criteria, such as their boss’ deadlines, their spouse’s desires, or their children’s needs, to identify their visions. Then, when they do not accomplish them, or do but still feel lousy, they berate themselves.

Instead, connect your Visions with the larger goal of your purpose so you can create Visions that make you feel more alive.

What good is knowing our Visions? There are lots of lives to lead other than our own. In the short term, another’s path can seem easy, the path of least resistance. But the fruits of being off path always come back to us. Our health suffers. We feel dissatisfied. We reach the end of life and wonder what we spent our time doing and why we bothered. Although finding our own way takes energy and faith, the rewards include being able to live in the world and with ourselves with integrity, at peace.

Action: Create my Visions.

First, identify the areas of focus for your organization or your life. For example, for your organization, you might choose areas like those in the Business Wheel.

For your life, you might use areas like those in the Wheel of Life.

Or pick words to describe your areas based on what makes sense to you. It’s your organization. It’s your life. What matters is what the words mean for you.

Second, now that you know your areas of focus, write a Vision for what you want each area to look like, sound like, and feel like when you are on mission.

Step 3: Generate Possibilities

Now that we know what we want in a big picture sense because we know our Mission and Visions, we often jump right to action steps. But there is an important step before moving to action. First, we must generate possible ways to make our Visions real. In generating possibilities, we allow ourselves to move out of our boxes, where we often feel stuck. To move beyond our box, instead of asking how we personally can accomplish a Vision, ask “How can any person take a step to move in the direction of making this vision real?” In this way we open up to options we don’t see, feel, or hear now. We can also invite others to help us generate ideas.

Step 4: Make Annual Choices

Now that you have possibilities, it is time to choose. During the next 12-month period, what do you commit to accomplish that keeps you moving in the direction of making real your Visions and living on Mission?

How do you choose? Wouldn’t it be great if, in the midst of the forest of choices with which we are surrounded, we came upon blazes to mark our path, and even better, stairs to take us easily up from one level to the next? The blazes and the stairs are present. We just need to open our eyes and look around to see them. When we are on our path, we feel satisfaction in our work. When we are on our path, we do things for their own sake, rather than as a replacement for or escape from something else.

Consider what is the right amount of time in each focus area for you, according to what is most important for you. Some indicators about how balanced your life is may include:

You are not at your perfect weight;
You get irritated over little things;
You cannot possibly wait the 2 minutes it takes the traffic arrow to turn green;
You cannot remember the last time you had fun;
You have not felt gratitude recently;

or any other triggers that you know are your personal indicators that you are not living your life according to what is most important for you. Ask yourself: How do I want to balance my time? Commit to next action steps during the next 12 months that get you more of what energizes you.

Make your desired results positive, personal, and present tense. By making your statements positive, personal, and present tense, you increase the probability of accomplishing what you want. For example, let’s say you weigh 130 pounds now and want to weigh 125 pounds. You could say I will try to lose 5 pounds. What if you lost 5 pounds and gained 10? Would you be pleased? Probably not! Instead, say I weigh 125 pounds. By changing your statement,

you focus on what you want so you can move towards it,
you personally commit to accomplish what you want, and
you align your conscious, subconscious, and unconscious mind to make it easier to accomplish your objective.

Language is powerful. Yes, you are playing with words! Since you can choose your words, why not choose the words that support your thoughts and direct your actions in the way you want? By doing so, you use for your benefit one of the most powerful games available to you. As you work with others, by keeping your statements positive, personal, and present tense, you send the people around you the message that you believe they can accomplish what you are asking. Show yourself the same courtesy.

The most important KEY RESULTS for me to accomplish between today, _________________ and _________________ are:

Focus Area	Complete?	Key Result
		1.

Step 5: Plan Routinely.

How do I stay on track? Now that you have choices for a 12-month period, how do you make certain you accomplish them? To turn your good intentions into action and keep your results from disappearing into the mist, like so many New Year’s resolutions, set yourself a schedule for taking time to plan. You can do your planning as often as once a week in times of intense action to as little as once a month, in times of greater leisure or when you are an organization with results that rely on multiple people for accomplishment.

Staying on track is not so much a matter of will as it is a matter of learning and then implementing the skills to take a single step in the right direction when will has disappeared.

Examine opportunities. Do you find yourself saying “yes” to every request, only to later feel overwhelmed and exhausted? Learn to create good boundaries so your life feels more balanced and you are energized to do the things you most want. When opportunities come, explicitly consider whether the opportunity moves you in your desired direction. Instead of making impulsive decisions you later regret, confidently say “No” to any that are not right for you or don’t lead where you want to go. Focus your time, energy, and resources on what is important for you.

Action. Make your Action Plan. First, take out your calendar and schedule routine time – every, 1, 2, 3, or 4 weeks – for the next 12 months when you can do your routine planning. Allow 30-60 minutes. Note that this is a maximum of 1 hour a week and possible as little as 6 hours over the next 6 months.

Next, keep your commitment to yourself.

Then, when you sit down, create your Action Plan. Look at the results you want to accomplish during this 12 months. Given your desired results, write down the next action steps, the ones you can do or be right this minute, that keep you moving in the direction of accomplishing what you want, that you commit to accomplish between the date of this planning time and your next planning time. For example, if today is January 14 and you have planning time every 2 weeks, write down the steps you commit to take between January 14 and January 28. Check that the results you write are positive, personal, present tense, specific/measurable, and attainable.

Now that you have good Key Results, take that next action step. Keep identifying and taking those next action steps.

Step 6: Identify What Works

Now you are in action! Are you getting what you want? After all, we’ve heard all that advice. We all know what we’re supposed to do. Eat right. Exercise. Get plenty of rest. So how come that does not translate into action for us? Because this advice is too generic for us. We need to know what works for us, as individuals. And for each of us, it will be something a little different, because we are each unique. Be specific to yourself, based on your experiences, because no one else is quite like you.

How can we transform ourselves? We transform ourselves in 3 steps: 1) by noticing how we are acting and being, 2) by identifying which of our actions and states of being bring us the most well-being, and 3) by taking conscious steps to increase our well-being.

How do I identify what works for me, uniquely? The first step in identifying what works for you is noticing. Once you notice, you can bring yourself to the point of choice. What should you notice? Each time you sit down to plan, check off the results you’ve accomplished, both on your regular planning list and on your Annual list. In considering each item, write down what makes you successful at accomplishing what you want. When we are able to see/feel/hear the causal connection between our action “in the moment” and what happens in the future as a result of our action now, we are more likely to act consciously. For example, “If I eat this today, I know in a week I will have a cold and be out from work, sick.” OR “If I say this, I create a groove in my mind and a belief that affects how I interact with people, and may hurt someone’s feelings.” The further away in time or chain of events the result, the harder it is to see the connection. With practice and by starting with the small and obvious, we grow our ability to know even distant connections.

Create macro and micro guidelines. Focus on:

how we act with other people
how we treat ourselves, internally and externally
caring for our physical body
understanding and developing the connection between our body and our emotions
disciplining our senses rather than having our senses direct our actions
focusing our attention in a particular direction
feeling a connection with that upon which we are focused
merging with that upon which we are focused

Notice correlations between what you do and how you feel. Identify for yourself what moves you toward purpose and what takes you off keel.

Once you notice, you can choose. Identify any trends. If you notice that you tend to be more patient on days when you have had enough sleep, choose what you will do. If you notice you tend to remain calm even in high stress situations when you eat minimally processed foods, choose what you will do. Write your choices in the positive, personal, and present tense. Add your choices to your Routine Plan.

Apply your guidelines to accomplish your desired Key Results. Once we are able to see/feel/hear the connection between our immediate action and future results, we must be able to step back from our desire for immediate gratification. “But I really, really want this pizza NOW.” How do I get up from the table, instead? OR “I’m mad and want to say this NOW.” How do I stick to right speech? OR “I really want to buy this geegaw, NOW.” How do we keep our money in our pocket? In all cases, the question is “How do I choose the path that gets me the long-term results I want?” Everyone has a different answer. Notice when you are able to step away from immediate gratification. Write down what works for you. Do it more often. Now that you know your guidelines, apply those guidelines to make your results reality. Evaluate your progress and acknowledge your accomplishments.

What if we are oblivious to what is right? Or we only think we’re right? How do we shift perspective so we DO see/hear/feel what is real? By asking ourselves questions about our underlying emotions and motivations, peeling away layers to discover new views of ourselves, and examining our views. The peeling and the examining help make our choices conscious. And there is always something new to discover, right here at home.

Action. Write down your guidelines. Each time you sit down to plan, check off the results you’ve accomplished, both on your regular planning list and on your Annual list. In considering each item, write down what makes you successful at accomplishing what you want. Create micro guidelines that apply to that specific situation and macro guidelines that apply to We learn what steps increase our success and well-being from considering and then writing down what makes us successful.

Step 7: Repeat

How do we create the habits that enable our transformation? We create our good habits with time, patience, and understanding. We use time to repeat our actions often enough that we come to act the way we want without thinking. We use patience to allow the time to create our good habits. We use understanding to feel compassion for ourselves as we learn.

Push. Pull. Stop. Start.A new beginning can be a time of mixed emotion. We may be eager to start and consciously welcome change. At the same time, we have old patterns, habits, and emotions that have worn grooves in our mind, body and spirit. These grooves may pull us back towards what was, back to the known, to the places we understand. We work gently to create new grooves, to smooth over old patterns, to embrace the yet-to-be-known.

Help? As we immerse ourselves in the unknown, we may get conflicting signals from those around us. Some may say that our new beginning should be a time of joy. We may be told that our perceptions are wrong, or misguided, or crazy. Some ignore that birthing is a messy, painful p r o c e s s rather than an instantaneous change. How can we help ourselves? Trust. Trust that our perceptions are accurate, regardless of what others say. Trust that the pain has a purpose, and be open to its message. Trust that all comes out perfectly.

Emerge. Bit by bit, step by step, just as the phoenix comes through the fire to be reborn, we too pass through our new beginning to our new self. We find that our strength, tempered by the fire, has grown. We find we are ready.

Action. Repeat to Create Habit. Repeat these steps until you act the way you want without thinking. Be patient and allow the time to create the habits you want. Use understanding to feel compassion for yourself as you learn.

Caution. Or – A Word of Encouragement.

Do you feel like everything you touch is turning to chaos? Does it seem that nothing you start is reaching a conclusion? Not a thing is going the way you want? Congratulations! You are in a dip.

What is a dip? A dip is part of the natural process of change. The universal law that describes the dip is Chaos before order. Think about organizing something in your office or home. What do you do first? Take everything out, spread it all over the floor, and make a big mess. This, of course, enables you to see everything you have, identify what you want to keep, decide whether you need anything else, and determine how to organize it. Mentally, you are doing the same things each time you make a change. During the dip you have, mentally if not yet physically, left the old, but not yet fully integrated the new. You may have doubts about whether you really want to stay on the path you’re on, whether you want to move forward, or whether really it might be easier to just go back to the old way.

In the everyday we get caught up in the things we believe we have to do, running here and going there, and seeing only that which confirms our existing worldview. When we glimpse reality, we realize what is most important to us. Have you ever spun and swung on a tire swing? When we do, we think the earth is spinning and the only stable place is the swing. This is us in the everyday. What happens when we are able to get off the swing? At first, we feel dizzy, and believe the earth continues to move. It takes time for us to realize the earth is stable. Our perspective finally shifts, and we notice the people on the swing and the swing are the ones moving, and we are stable. This is us experiencing reality.

How do we live in the everyday and reality at the same time? We all have the innate ability to remain part of the everyday and to simultaneously see, feel, and hear reality. We can eliminate the effect on us of the insanity of the everyday by taking refuge in reality. Reality never changes. It is true day after day, life after life, generation after generation.

How do we take refuge in reality? Everyone on the swing is calling to us and encouraging us to get back on the swing. At first, we continue to think swinging looks like fun, and we may jump back on. Then we remember reality, and get ourselves back on firm ground. We work to see, feel, and hear more reality. We help keep ourselves on firm ground by:

connecting with other people who are on the ground,
keeping close to us objects, sayings, and pictures that remind of us reality, and
feeling compassion for those who remain on the swing

Remember, You are Close. Because the dip is a time of confusion, you may be tempted to turn around. Think instead about what your life will look like, sound like, and feel like when you accomplish your objective. Draw energy from your vision. Remember how much you have accomplished already. List it all. Acknowledge yourself. Remember that chances are good you are very close to accomplishing what you want, even if you cannot yet see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Accept the dip. Simply accept that you are in a dip. Be grateful for the time to mentally and physically adjust to the change you have chosen. Relax and know that the dip will pass.