Step One: Envision exactly what would be just perfect for you!

Many people stop on this first step by their negativity. But no one is going to do this except you. Take some time and create a picture in your mind of the work which would be just perfect for you. Is it working in the health field, with children, painting, writing or creating marketing campaigns? Separate the money at this stage or you will NEVER move to the step 2. Of course, there will be steps to get to this perfect state. What would that look like for you?

Step Two: Write down your plan to get there

When you write down a plan, your whole life and activities start to align around what you want. Then you start to figure out how to reach your goals. All of a sudden daily activities start to align and make sense. You start to be clearer about which opportunities to say yes to and which to turn down. Once written down you have something to refer to daily especially when you encounter others who don’t support your plans.

Step Three: Talk to others about your plans

This is not a process of ego. In some ways it doesn’t matter who you talk to. Strangers on the airplane are the best for the start. They listen and ask questions while you get to practice your new elevator speech about your life. When you talk to others about your plans you commit yourself and start to believe that what you want is possible. This is really important. You are not talking to others to get their views. You have to be strong emotionally and resist to the negative view.

Step Four: Take small steps daily

Imagine you just started an exercise program. The first 4 days you jog slowly. You start to feel sore but good at the same time. Then you decide to take a week off. You lose all the momentum and fitness gained in those first four days. The same is true for vocational passion. You need to take small steps daily. For example, if you decide you want to be in the marketing field, don’t let a day go by without reading an article on marketing, talking to someone about marketing or marketing something yourself. These activities build new habits around what you want vs. perhaps old addictions which are no longer helpful for you in your life.

Step Five: Measure your progress

Financial experts will advise to make a budget and keep track of your spending. They claim this helps to place focus on where your spending is going. Again this is true for moving towards your vocational goals. To keep track of your daily activities and progress will help as you move towards new goals in your life. Then you can examine what is working and what is not working, so you can make corrections as you go.

Step Six: Celebrate small progress

Using the above example, you decide to subscribe to an on-line marketing forum with other marketing professionals. For a week, you log on daily and discuss the world of marketing with others. It feels good to be involved with others who share your passion of marketing. At the end of the week you have new ideas and are feeling pretty good about your progress. Ok, time to celebrate in a healthy way. Maybe for you this means going out to a nice dinner or maybe a movie or buying a new CD or your favorite newspaper. The point is these small celebrations will reinforce your progress and encourage even more progress. This is very different than the rewards you used to have in the past when the organization allowed you to wear jeans on Friday for work performed- how humiliating!

Page 1 of 3 :: First | Last :: Prev | 1 2 3 | Next