What is planning of goals and affairs, what stages does it consist of, what is a plan and what types of it are, what planning methods are there, how to plan self-realization and what are the results of planning
The main process of self-realization is the successive achievement of multiple goals. And it can be done in 2 ways.
You can spontaneously move from one goal to another, from one task to the next, depending on conditions and resources. Those. do what you want most now. This is a chaotic option
. When using it, the process of achieving goals can be the most enjoyable and effective.
But the main disadvantage
This method is that the goals achieved may bring little benefit for self-realization. And the results obtained may turn out to be insignificant, not bringing you closer to the goal of life. Those. In this method, there is a high probability that a person will deviate greatly from the optimal path of self-realization.
To avoid this and move along the right path, you can use another method - ordered or sequential
. In this case, each step is selected on the basis of a detailed analysis, an assessment of its usefulness for self-realization, the availability of the best conditions and resources for its completion. This helps you move towards your life goals more successfully and efficiently.
Of course, this method also has a drawback - it requires additional effort to determine the next, correct actions and the order in which they should be performed. That is, spending resources only on determining the path to achieving goals, and not on actually performing actions.
The main means
To consistently determine the most useful goals and achieve them is planning.
Planning
is the process of analyzing current activities, forming an action plan and optimal allocation of resources to achieve the goal
Main purpose of planning
- this is the determination of possible actions to achieve a goal, predicting the consequences of their implementation and choosing the best path to the goal.
By analogy with roads, this is the process of drawing up a map that can be used to move from city A (the current state) to city B (the desired state) along the shortest path. Planning allows you to “build” a path to a goal with a description of all possible “turns, intersections,” possible obstacles (“mountains, rivers, gorges”) and ways to overcome them (“bridges and tunnels”).
The result of planning
is an action plan.
Plan
is a description of the sequence of actions, the conditions for their implementation, the required resources, the rules for their use and subgoals, the implementation of which allows you to achieve the goal
The plan provides a clear picture of at least the next best step.
to get closer to the goal. And ideally, it provides a description of all actions to obtain the required result. It is a “road map”.
Depending on the complexity of the goal to draw up an accurate, optimal plan
may require a lot of experience and advanced planning skills.
But, as a rule, most plans are approximate
and may contain errors, especially at the beginning of implementing planning into activities. Therefore, it is advisable not to strictly adhere to the plan, but to constantly adjust it, for example, when receiving new information, gaining experience or changing goals.
Planning allows you not only to determine the best way to achieve goals, but also to significantly save resources
, For example:
• time: it has been established that using 10 minutes a day for planning saves on average 2 hours when performing the same tasks; • energy: only useful things will be done; • relationships: asking for help will only be possible as a last resort; • finance: only necessary resources will be purchased;
Thus, planning makes it possible to make the process of self-realization consistent, and the plan helps to determine the optimal steps for successfully and efficiently achieving the goal of life.
Method one. Create a plan for the day
Sit down with a piece of paper
This could be a notepad, notebook, or a blank document on your computer. Choose what is convenient for you. Make a list of what you need to accomplish in a day. List every meeting and agreement you have. What are your goals for the day? Do you want to go in for sports, or, on the contrary, is this a day of relaxation? What tasks do you absolutely need to finish?
Make yourself a schedule
What time should you finish your first task or project? Write down every little thing, starting with the one that needs to be done first, then the next, and so write a schedule for the whole day. Make sure you don't forget anything. Of course, every day is different, so every day the plan will be different. A basic plan might look like this, for example:
- 09:00–10:00 — get to the office, check email, answer letters.
- 10:00–11:30 — meeting with Max and Katya.
- 11:30–12:30 – project No. 1.
- 12:30–13:15 – lunch (healthy food!).
- 13:15–14:30 - analysis of project No. 1, meet with Sergey and discuss project No. 1.
- 14:30–16:00 - project No. 2.
- 16:00–17:00 - start project No. 3, prepare things for tomorrow.
- 17:00–18:30 - leave the office, go to the gym.
- 18:30–19:00 - go grocery shopping.
- 19:00–20:30 - prepare dinner, rest.
- 20:30– ... - to the cinema with Masha.
Refocus yourself every hour
It's important to take a moment after a certain time to analyze how productive you were during that time. Did you do everything you needed to do? Then give yourself a moment to reset, close your eyes and relax. This way, you can efficiently move on to the next task you need to complete.
Analyze your day
When you're done with most of your day, take a moment to see if you're sticking to your plan. Did you finish everything that was planned? Where did you go wrong? What worked and what didn't? What distracts you, and how can you combat distractions in the future?
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Prioritize your tasks
Once you've determined your actions, you'll want to review your list and arrange your tasks in the order that works best for you. This way, you start with the most important step to make the biggest impact.
For example, if you have a sedentary job and want to lose weight, the first step should be to become even more active. From there you can add more time to your training plan. The next step may be to change your diet, such as eating a salad before lunch to avoid overeating, or replacing soda with plain water.
Method two. Create a plan for life
Create overall goals that you want to achieve in your life.
How do you want to develop? What do you want to achieve in your life? Think of it as a “life list.” Remember the movie "Knockin' on Heaven's Door"? This is exactly what the list of life is. These should be exactly the goals that you really want to achieve, and not those that you think are necessary. Sometimes it can be helpful to break your goals down into categories for better visualization. Categories could be, for example:
- career;
- trips;
- family/friends;
- health;
- finance;
- knowledge;
- spirituality.
Goals could be, for example:
- Write and publish a book.
- Visit every continent.
- Create a family.
- Lose 10 kilograms.
- Save money for my children's education.
- Finish college.
- Learn more about Buddhism.
Create some specific goals with a specific completion date
Now that you have general goals that you want to achieve in your life, it's time to create some specific goals. And be sure to set a date for completing the goal. A couple of examples:
- Send the book to 30 publications by June 2016.
- Go on a trip to South America in 2015, and to Asia in 2016.
- Weigh 70 kilograms in January 2015.
Assess your reality and where you are right now
Be honest with yourself and really evaluate your current life. Using the goals you have listed, evaluate the point where you are right now. For example, your goal is to publish a book, and specifically, to send it to publishers in June 2016. And now you only have half the manuscript, and you're not sure you like the first half.
Decide how you will achieve your goals
What steps will you take to be able to achieve your goals? Determine the steps you need to take and write them down. For example, for our book from now until November 2014 we need:
- re-read the first half of the book;
- finish writing your book;
- rework aspects of the book that I didn't like;
- editing grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc.;
- give to picky friends to read;
- find publishers who will consider my book;
- send the manuscript to publishers.
Write down the steps to achieve your goals
You can do this in any format you like - handwrite, computer, or draw. Congratulations! You have just created your life plan.
Review your plan and adjust it
Like everything in this world, your life will change and your goals may change too. What was important to you at 12 years old may not be so important when you are 22 or 42 years old. And it's okay to change your life plan because it shows that you are aware of the changes that are happening in your life.
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Planning results
To minimize
uncertainty and risks of self-realization, you need to use an orderly approach. To use it you need to plan your activities.
The result of planning is a plan
with a description of possible actions, connections between them, their hierarchy, the sequence of their implementation, possible alternatives and necessary resources. The plan is materialized in a convenient and understandable format, detailed and systematized so that it can be easily used to complete tasks, updated and search for the necessary information in it.
Drawing up a plan in itself minimizes the uncertainty of achieving the goal, because an image is created in the mind
possible ways to achieve them, and the most suitable one is selected.
The main result of planning is complete clarity
what needs to be done to achieve success.
This allows you to “hit the target” and minimize costs. And by creating new or introducing existing technologies into activities, you can significantly save fairly limited personal resources. This gives an advantage
over competitors and allows you to obtain additional resources for personal purposes.
Another important result of planning is increased motivation.
. By getting a clear picture of what needs to be done to achieve a goal, you have much more energy to move towards it. And, consequently, the efficiency and quality of activities increases. Then the goals are guaranteed to be achieved and give all the expected results.
By applying planning every day and throughout your activities, life becomes more smooth, calm and comfortable. There will be less fear, stress and negative emotions. Of course, this does not provide complete insurance against unpredictable situations, accidents, force majeure, etc. But at least life will have a clear, correct direction and understanding of why you need to move forward, and most importantly, how.
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Part One: Defining the Problem
Recognize the problem you are facing
Sometimes the hardest part of creating a plan is that you don't know what the problem is. Often the problem we face creates several more problems. Trouble, as they say, does not come alone. What you need to do is find the source of the problem. And this is exactly what you need to deal with.
Your mother won't let you spend four weeks at a friend's mountain cabin. This is a problem, but where is the source of this problem? You got a D in algebra. And this is precisely the reason why your mother does not let you go to a friend's house for the holidays. And this two is exactly the problem you need to solve.
Determine what result you hope to achieve by solving your problem
What goal do you hope to achieve by solving the problem? Focus on achieving your goal. The rest will come by itself.
Your goal is to improve your math grade to at least a B. At the same time, having improved your knowledge in mathematics, you hope that your mother will let you go to a friend's house for the holidays.
Find out why this problem occurs
Which of your habits contributed to the problem? Take some time to analyze the reasons for the problem.
Your problem is that you got a C in math. Think about what could have led to this: maybe you talked a lot with a friend in class. Or they didn’t do their homework in the evenings because of football training, for example.
Consider external factors contributing to the problem
Many problems arise due to something you do. But don’t forget about external factors working against you. Let's look at an example. You received a bad grade in math that needs to be corrected. This may be due to a misunderstanding of the teacher's explanation of the topic, rather than because you were talking to a friend.
Schedule your tasks
Setting a deadline for your goal is imperative; this prevents you from delaying starting your action plan. The key, however, is to be realistic. For example, it is unlikely that you will lose 10 kg in two weeks.
Moreover, you should also set a start and end date for each action step you create, as well as a schedule for when you will complete specific tasks. Adding them to your schedule will ensure that you stay focused on these tasks when they need to happen, without allowing anything else to distract you. For example, if you schedule time to go to the gym, you will not schedule anything else during that time period.
You can use a paper calendar or planner, or an online calendar. You can use it to set deadlines or reminders for when to do each step, and it can be shared with other people who need to be aware (like your partner or mentor).
Part Two: Find a Solution and Create a Plan
Find several possible solutions to your problem
You can simply write down all the possible options on a piece of paper or use one of the brainstorming techniques. Such, for example, as a mental map. Whatever method you choose, you must consider both possibilities of the problem: your fault and factors beyond your control.
Solving the problem of communicating with a friend in class:
- Sit in class as far away from your friends as possible.
- Explain to your friends that you are not learning in class and are getting bad grades. So you need to focus on the lesson.
- If you are sitting in your assigned seat, ask your teacher to move you to a seat so you can concentrate better.
Solving the problem of unfinished homework due to soccer practice:
- Do some of your homework during lunch or during a break. This will leave you with less work to do in the evening.
- Stick to a routine. After training you should have dinner and do your homework. Reward yourself by watching TV after you do your homework.
Solving the problem of misunderstanding algebra:
- Let a classmate help you, who can clarify all the points that are unclear to you.
- Ask your teacher for help. Explain that you do not understand the material and need additional explanation.
- Take math classes with a tutor.
Create a plan
So you've brainstormed and figured out what your problem is. Now choose the most effective solutions to the problem in your opinion and write down a plan for yourself. Hang the plan somewhere where you will see it most often. Your plan for improving your math level should look like this:
Improvement plan within four weeks
- Tell Katya that I can’t talk to her in class. If this does not help, then move away from her.
- Do homework every Tuesday and Thursday during lunch. This will leave me with fewer tasks to do after training.
- Attend math elective every Monday and Wednesday. Goal: in four weeks, improve your level from a three to at least a four.
Review your first week
Did you do everything you planned? Have you been successful? What mistakes did you make? By doing a good analysis, you can avoid mistakes in the future.
Cross off completed items
You may think you've spent a lot of time creating lists. Not only do they help make your goals a reality, but lists also help organize your action plan, create a sense of urgency, and give you a way to track your progress. Because lists provide structure, they reduce anxiety—you know exactly what to do and when to do it.
There is something else special about the lists. When you cross a task off your action plan, your brain releases dopamine. This reward makes you feel good and you will want to repeat that feeling.
Review and reset settings if necessary.
Achieving any personal goal is a process. While it would be great if you could achieve your goal overnight, it takes time. Along the way, you may encounter failures. Instead of getting frustrated and giving up, schedule frequent reviews—daily, weekly, or monthly—to see how you're progressing.
If you don't end up where you expected, you may have to change your plan of action. Rework it so that you can achieve your goal.
Write down your goal
If you really want to know how to create an action plan to achieve your goals, it's time to get your goals out of your head and onto a piece of paper. While you can also do this electronically through an app, studies have shown that you are 42% more likely to achieve your goal if it is written down.[1].
This is especially true for business owners. If they don't schedule their time, it will be scheduled for them.[2]
When you physically write down a goal, you access the left side of the brain, which is the literal, logical side. As a result, this tells your brain that you are serious about doing this.
