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How was your January this year? Everything you expected? Do you have resolutions still going?
The fact is that many people begin the New Year with a bunch of great goals and aspirations, but as early as February, they can get derailed. People that set goals to run a certain number of miles a week are already missing their marks. People who opted not to procrastinate as much are already procrastinating…you get the idea.
I’ve been thinking about this concept a lot lately—what if we thought about the year in terms of months rather than a single entity? If you take a monthly approach to your goal setting and your aspirations for 2010, I can almost guarantee that you will come close and potentially achieve all of the goals you’ve set out to do.
Think about a baseball player’s approach to hitting. The batter likely steps out of the batter’s box in between pitches to refocus and think about what could be coming next.
Here is my at-bat approach to experiencing a great month.
1. Step out of the batter’s box.
The most important thing you can do at the end of any month is to reflect on it. What went right and wrong in the last month? What can you do differently to address those issues? If you make a point to step back from everything you’re involved in and re-access your priorities, I can guarantee you you’ll become more focused and your goals will be clearer than before.
2. Fix your equipment.
Most batters tend to fix and adjust their equipment upon leaving the batter’s box, and you should do the same—not literally, though. On a material level, access what you need and don’t need to achieve your goals. For instance, if you are looking to become a better blogger and produce more content, make an investment in the blogging tools you need while tossing the computer games, which can eat up your time.
Make your work area a better area to work and eliminate distractions. Organize documents and loose papers into folders and clean your computer desktop. Regardless of whatever kind of work you do, there will always be improvements you can make to improve your productivity.
3. Take your practice swings.
At the beginning of any month, it’s important for you to take your big practice swings. Start the month off by setting some bold new goals and focus on starting the month off quickly. Getting off to a nice start on your aspirations for the month will pay big dividends later on.
4. Step back in to the batter’s box and get ready.
Months go by quicker than we think, so when the new month comes, be ready for whatever it brings. If you take time to reaccess, set new goals and start off quickly, you’ll be off to a great start to your best month of the year.
What are your tips on goal-setting and starting your month off well? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
(Photo Credit: Party Bets)
