Archive for the ‘Planning for 2010’ tag
Do You Have a 2010 Vision?
All success begins with a vision. As Napoleon once said, “A successful general always fights the battle twice – first in his mind, and then on the battlefield.” What he meant was that successful generals always envision their plan first, including possible contingencies. They know that battles never unfold as they are planned because the enemy also gets a vote. So successful generals also ask themselves what they would do in response to various contingencies. They think it through ahead of time so that they can move quickly when something happens in reality. In the end they are successful because they planned in advance, prepared for contingencies, and had a vision of how they would succeed.
A vision of the future is critical to success whether you are a general, a business leader, leader of a volunteer group, or simply trying to lead a more productive life. If you haven’t yet made your plans for 2010, you need to get a vision right now. What are your major goals in the coming year? Have you written them down? Have you thought about the small, discreet steps that you need to take to accomplish your goals? Have you thought about the resources you will need? Have you said a deadline? These are the basic questions you should ask and answer to increase your probability of success in 2010. Personally, I am asking myself these same questions because I know that this will help crystallize my thinking and help me to achieve my personal goals for 2010.
If you haven’t made your plans yet, the year is just starting, so it is not too late. A written plan will not guarantee your success; however, it will dramatically increase the odds for success in your favor. Harvard University studied the MBA class of 1979 and asked them: “Have you set clear, written goals for the future and made plans to accomplish them?” Mark McCormick reported the results of the study in his book, What They Don’t Teach You In the Harvard Business School: Only 3 % had written goals; 13% had any goals, and84% had no goals; then 10 years later……..the 13% on average earned twice as much as the 84%. The 3% with written goals earned 10 times as much as the other 97% together. While income and earnings are not the ultimate goal, this study does demonstrate the power of having written plans and goals.
If you are in a formal leadership position within an organization, you will want to ask yourself some additional questions that will enlighten your plans for 2010. In order to help you along, I have put together a one-page summary of key questions that show how the Victory Principles can be applied to this planning process. I call this the Leadership Lessons for 2010, and you can download a copy here. A link is also posted in the bonus section and you can share this with your friends using the share button below. Best wishes for success in 2010 and beyond.
Here is your copy of Leadership Lessons for 2010
Good Luck!
Leonard Kloeber, author
