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Get a little head start on 2021
This week’s newsletter is a debate and breakdown of who’s the best goal scorer. After last weeks catchy email subject there was a challenge to Messi in the form of Ronaldo, not the fat one, even though both are amazing.
Messi has a better goal per game statistic than Ronaldo, how Ronaldo has done it at the highest level with 3 top clubs….. Just kidding, loved the feedback though 😊
It’s getting colder for most and it’s a slow down before Christmas and the seasonal period. This year has been crazy at times but there have been positives and negatives. I feel it’s important to reflect on that point as it’s far easier to remember the negatives than the positives. Start thinking of mini wins and the bigger ones start popping in also
Travelled for work less
Spent less money on fuel
Learnt how to make glass in Minecraft
Got to spend more time with the kids
As you’re reflecting it’s also a great time to finalise the 2021 plan; hopefully you have a bit of time off from work as this is a great time to think clearer and also get a little creativity on what you want to achieve
So far we’ve planned to the Quarter for your goals. Now we will add the task to get there. If you haven’t completed all the steps, go back and review the last few newsletter to go from values to vision and mission and then goals – Newsletter archive link at the end of the email
Next is to create the steps to you need to do in order to hit that quarterly or step goal, while working towards your bigger goals. There is a huge benefit to these steps, as they:
Help build momentum
Allow you to learn as you go and pivot/adjust as needed
Yet the positive vibe/dopamine hit of progress
Keep it simple for your brain to avoid procrastination and overwhelm
Remember…..
“Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and upon which we must vigorously act. There is no other route to success.” —Pablo Picasso
At this stage ALL you need to do 😊 is come up 5 to 7 steps to reach your goal, you can do more or less, but this for me keeps its small chunks which are easy to complete without too many steps that is then hard to manage
Here are a couple of examples (one work, one life)
Annual goal – Increase monitoring coverage of production environment to 98%
Quarterly goal – Build monitoring coverage baseline
Document monitoring systems and metrics, they can produce
Document discovery method – who do we know what is in production
Gather report of what is monitored and what is in the environment
Create dashboard of monitoring coverage
Review with IT owners to ensure correct
Publish dashboard
Annual Goal - Increase Facebook group to 500 active participants
Quarterly goal – Complete training on increasing Facebook group engagement
Document what is the value of the group and what members should receive from being a member
Research groups – what do people like/dislike
Find a training provider or online course
Complete course
Test new approach
As you can see, the steps themselves are relatively straightforward but will ultimately move you to your goal without feeling overwhelming. As you go, keep a track of process and also assign a deadline to each step, as it’s no point getting to step 3 or 4 when you only have a couple of weeks left of the quarter, unless they are super easy steps left
I find it really helpful to either put the dates in my calendar or put them on a year planner and stick it by my desk. I like the printer one more as you will see it every day and keep focused, unlike a calendar reminder that you most likely won’t see till the week or day before it’s due.
I’m sure some people don’t even check there, they just wait for a meeting pop up and go to the meeting, or they chose which of the 4 meetings that overlap they should attend, all without declining the others
Anyway, little angry rant over.
For those in the UK, you can use this template I found, it can also be used in other countries, you’ll just have to update the holidays
Good luck and just think of the momentum you will have going into 2021 if you do this NOW!
The last piece of this puzzle is that I’ll help you set good habits that will help you keep on track to those goals that you have set out.
Let me know how you get on and feel free to reach out if you have any questions or topics you’d like to hear about and as always if you liked this newsletter, please share and let you friends and colleagues know about it as I’d love to help more people!
In the meantime; have a wonderful Christmas, festive or seasonal holiday
P.S.
