Transformation begin with small changes!  To fulfill big desires we need to start with small goals.

Not long ago I made a new friend.  A young man of 70+ years.  During his last check-up the doctor chided him for his high blood pressure.  The doctor wanted to put him on blood pressure medication.  My friend, however, wanted an opportunity to see if he could make an impact on his blood pressure on his own.  So he set a goal!

He recognized a problem (See part 1).  Then, with his doctor, he evaluated the problem.  He did not stop there.  He began to START to do something to change his life.

He set a goal.  A measurable, time sensitive and shared goal.  For him, it was to walk 20 miles every week.  With a follow-on goal of turning the 20 miles into power walking.  He shared his goal with his family.

Now that he has his goal set, he gathered the tools.  These tools included proper foot ware, wet weather clothe (he lives in the North West of the U.S.).  It also included reading about power walking and watching some videos about proper technique.

That covers a review of the S and T of START (See Part 2).  Now on to the -ART:

Acton Plan

On our path from turning desires into realties we need to recognize, evaluates, set a goal, and gather tools.  We then need to take these things and make an Action Plan. 

These Action Plans ask and answer: Who, What, When, Where we will accomplish our goal.

• Who needs to be involved?  We may only need ourselves.  To whom will you be accountable? Sometimes we will need, or should involve others.  Such as a doctor, therapist, nutritionist, trainer, friend, coworker, family member or coach.
• What tools will you utilize?  This includes, but is much more than, equipment.  Most goals will involve some kind of technique that we can learn.  Another friend of mine was having panic attacks.  A breathing technique was one of the tools utilized to accomplish their goal of dealing with panic attacks.
• When will you work on the goal?  How many days per week?  How much time per day?
• Where will you work on your goal?

Run with the plan

Once we have our plan—preferably in writing—we need to run with the plan.  It does us little good to set goals, gather tools and learn techniques if we stop at that point.  We need to put all the prep work into actions.  Run with your plan in confidence!

Test your plan

It is important to know if our plan is helping us achieve our goal and if our goal is leading us toward accomplishing our desired objective.  It is not a matter a plan failing.  Failure only occurs when you give up completely.  It is helpful to be objective when assessing if a plan is working or not working.  This we can tune and adjust the plan or changed the focus of our goal. 

Two important test questions concerning your current plan:

1. Am I getting closer to achieving my goal?
2. Is this goal getting me closer to achieving my objective?

Honesty is key!  We can always learn new techniques, change equipment or modify our plan.

By setting appropriate goals we can change our lives, achieve our desires and impact the lives of those around us.  If you feel stuck in the goal process let me know.  I would me happy to do what I can to help you achieve victory. (david@HealingTheWoundsOfWar.com)

In part 1 of 3 on Change we discussed the possibility of change occurring in our life.  Recognizing the need for change is a start.  We must also believe that change is possible.

Today we begin to START the forward action part of the change process.  Recognizing that there is a problem is the first step.  Some evaluation of the situation can be helpful.  If you stop there then you have only become a proficient navel gazer.  It is at this post that we need to START to move in a new direction. (See zzca for an overview of START)

Let’s take the first two letter and START:

Set Goals:

It is easy to confuse goals with desires.  I recently read a post where people were asked to share their goals.  Some replies were like: “I want to lose 150 pounds.” Or “To stop having panic attacks at a crowded store.”  Both of these would be great accomplishments.  They are both worthy objectives.  But as a starting point they are desires.  They are huge feats that require many small changes.

For best success goals should be:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Time sensitive
• Written and Shared

Research shows the writing and sharing goals significantly increased the likelihood of success.  Writing a clear, specific, measurable, time sensitive goal and sharing it with someone for accountability will help bring the desire into reality.

Goals can either be outcome or performance based.  An example of an outcome based goal is: I will lose 5 pounds in 5 weeks.  Whereas a performance based goal is: I will walk 10,000 steps 5 days a week for the next 5 weeks. They are both measurable and time sensitive.

Outcome and performance based goals each have their place in bringing about change.  Ultimately we need to achieve the desired outcome.  Nevertheless, performance based goals are a great tool to help lead us toward accomplishing whatever objective we need.

Consider the desire to stop having panic attacks in crowded stores.  There may be many obstacles to overcome.  Many outcome and performance goals and tools many be needed.

Tools:

Without the right tools we will not be able to accomplish our goals.  Once we started turning desires into specific and measurable we need to gather the appropriate tools.  Tools are the techniques, equipment, resources, and people we need to accomplish our goals and reach our objectives.

Books, training DVDs, equipment, technique, seminars, doctors, councilors, medication, friends, teachers and coaches are just a few examples of resources.  It can be tempting to allow the lack of resources to derail our goals.  Many resources require little to no money.  Be frugal; but be willing to invest what you have too!

What do you desire?  Can you turn that into a specific, measurable, time sensitive, written goal?  If so, what resources do you need to accomplish that goal?

On the surface this may sound easy.  The process may not be complicated.  That, however, does not mean it is easy.  Write me (david@HealingTheWoundsOfWar.com) if you want help defining your goals and locating resources.  Perhaps together we can move forward.