Jeff: I'm amused that you're asking that question. I spent most of the long commute this morning thinking about that very topic.
I'm at the very beginning--I did my collection and initial processing over the past two days.
During this process, I can't help but analyze "How did I get here"? and "How can I make this work", "What challenges am I going to face and how can I make them fade?"
I can see a couple of things that may get in my way:
- Perfectionism--no point in doing this unless I do it perfectly
- Overdoing (correlated to perfectionism), i.e., defining projects or goals in such a way that I can't succeed, i.e, being healthy doesn't mean I have to train like a marathoner.
- Procrastination--typically related to Doubt, Conflicts, or lack of Clarity. An example of Doubt: If I don't believe that taking a long walk 3x a week really helps me achieve my goal of fitness, why do it?
An example of Conflict: Taking a romantic vaction with my DH may be in conflict with my financial goals or with my goal to do more activities as a family.
An example of Lack of Clarity: I posted an example earlier of wanting to take a one-week herding seminar with my dog. I keep putting off signing up for it. I realized that one reason was I had conflicts. Another reason was that the real goal is to put a herding title on my dog. The seminar is just ONE way to start down that path. Another way is to find a local trainer and work with them one on one--which I have to do whether or not I attend the seminar. When I got clear on the goal (herding title) and got clear on the conflicts (money, time away from work, time away from family), I realized that now isn't the time.
What this all condenses to is this:
I want a worksheet for projects that includes:
- What is a successful outcome?
- Does this project conflict with any goals/areas of focus/other projects? (If so, consider putting this worksheet in "Waiting For" the completion of the other goals)
- Is this project mandatory for achieving any goals?
- What are the risks or roadblocks and what can I do to minimize them?
Also...I created a list of areas of focus and roles I have in my life. I'm thinking it would be easy to come up with another worksheet that translates these into projects or actions by asking questions like:
What is my desired relationship to <blank>?
What's the current relationship like?
What would it look like to take this relationship to "the next level"?
Are there any obvious metrics?
What's the minimum you have to do to maintain the current level?
What would it take to move this relationship to a higher level?
Can you define a written 1 year goal for this next level?
How important is this?
Does achieving this goal support any other roles/ areas of focus/ or goals?
Example:
Area of Focus: Health
Desired: Lean, fit, flexible body in good heath
Current: A little overweight, fairly strong, a bit out of shape aerobically, a bit stiff.
Next Level: Reduced weight, maintain strength, more flexible, able to run a 5K
Metrics: Weight in pounds, bodyfat %, waist measurement, resting heart rate, can I touch my toes, (and so on)
Minimum level of effort to maintain: Continue strength training.
To take it up just one level:
- Define project to add aerobics
- Define project to revise eating habits
- Define project to add yoga 2x a week
Can you define a 1 year goal that encompasses this next level?
These aren't action items, but potential projects. When I do the project worksheet, I may come up with other issues. But as part of the project plan, I get the chance to Clarify my vision, identify that this supports a specific written goal, and identify any conflicts with other goals or projects.
Just some ideas that I haven't fleshed out yet, but I thought I'd share them to see if the spark any other thoughts.
