Time Track Thursday #8

Now that I've gotten you to plan backwards, it's time to do some prioritizing. Do the important things you need to reach your goals first, and these are not always the things you want to do. I'd rather make some more projects into tutorials instead of filling out my LLC paperwork, but it has the highest priority at the moment.

Today's biggest focus: Do the most important thing first!




I'm sure many of you are familiar with Stephen Covey's Time Management Matrix. This is a friendly reminder that we should all be spending most of our time in Quadrant 2: important but not urgent. Occasional urgency is ok, but don't let it run your life. Activities in Quadrant 2 significantly and positively affect our lives, the quadrant in which our dreams and goals are. Next week I'll have some great tips to help you prioritize more effectively.

Time Track Thursday #7

Planning backwards helps you focus on results

Planning forward is the natural approach. We have a goal and think about all the future actions we need to take, but the real focus should be results. Planning backwards is results based, and provides a structure to get the right things done at the right time.

How to Plan Backward

1. Pick out one of your larger goals, and break it down into smaller goals. Pick the first one you need to achieve.
2. List the mini goals or milestones you need to accomplish to achieve your goal by the deadline you've set.
3. Draw a timeline from left to right. Put the current date on the far left and your deadline on the far right. Insert each milestone with a date, starting from your deadline and working backwards.
4. Once your milestones are in the right places, list underneath each one the actions you need to take to achieve them. Keep it in your planner, and TAKE ACTION!

Planning this way can make your dreams become reality and transforms your excitement for a project into focus productivity. Writing out a plan like this is really the hardest part of achieving your larger goals and dreams :)

Time Track Thursday #6

It's a proven fact that when you have written goals, you accomplish more important things more often. So, I was astounded to find out that only 3% of Americans have specific, written goals!

Grab a sheet of paper and think about what you want to accomplish this year, in 5 years, even 10 years. I'm more of a "fly by the seat of my pants girl" so my only long-term goal is to have a studio in a house with walls that are any color but white. I have many goals for this year though, including blogging at least 3 times per week, keeping a full Etsy shop, and getting the new, improved Bead Circle website up and running.

My site is a big goal so I have smaller supporting goals that make a big goal manageable. For example, a goal for last month: research web hosts, choose one, and buy a year's worth of hosting. Write out many goals and focus on the most important first. It's a good idea to have some easy goals, and some more challenging goals.

Commit to your goals today by writing them down and sharing them with others. Now you're accountable, and exponentially more likely to achieve them!