All the leadership development materials have a strong stress on goal setting using a variety of terms: goals, vision, objectives, priorities, long term planning, short term planning, effective time management, mission statement, etc.
For years I have done something that could be described as goal setting a couple times throughout the year and then on a smaller scale every once in a while to help me with my week’s plan if I saw that I was going to bogged down.
Sometime last month I sat down with my pen and notebook and started writing the days of the week at the top of the page in a row. Then I sighed as I thought about what I was going to write in those columns. I just couldn’t do it any more. It seemed pointless, empty and outright boring. I just couldn’t bring myself to reorganize yet again.
So I stared at the page and tried to mentally pump myself up. My self talk sounded something like, “Come on Ang’. You’ve got goals don’t you? Remember what you are working towards?” But then I couldn’t answer myself; at least not with a satisfying response. Anything I said seemed trite and trivial.
Then some thoughts came to me and I started writing myself a note. Here is some of what I wrote:
“See this right here? You start this so many times. But what do you do with it? And now you are going to sit down and try to do it again. If you are going to do it then why not start with what is most important to you? … Could I fill a weekly chart with who I love and that order my life? Hm… I think if I replace what with who that it might bring a good order to my life. I might just try that. Because, really, all my whats come back to a who. Let’s try it… It’s only paper. I do what I do for who?”
This is my new motivator and the clarifier when things get hairy:
For years I have done something that could be described as goal setting a couple times throughout the year and then on a smaller scale every once in a while to help me with my week’s plan if I saw that I was going to bogged down.
Sometime last month I sat down with my pen and notebook and started writing the days of the week at the top of the page in a row. Then I sighed as I thought about what I was going to write in those columns. I just couldn’t do it any more. It seemed pointless, empty and outright boring. I just couldn’t bring myself to reorganize yet again.
So I stared at the page and tried to mentally pump myself up. My self talk sounded something like, “Come on Ang’. You’ve got goals don’t you? Remember what you are working towards?” But then I couldn’t answer myself; at least not with a satisfying response. Anything I said seemed trite and trivial.
Then some thoughts came to me and I started writing myself a note. Here is some of what I wrote:
“See this right here? You start this so many times. But what do you do with it? And now you are going to sit down and try to do it again. If you are going to do it then why not start with what is most important to you? … Could I fill a weekly chart with who I love and that order my life? Hm… I think if I replace what with who that it might bring a good order to my life. I might just try that. Because, really, all my whats come back to a who. Let’s try it… It’s only paper. I do what I do for who?”
This is my new motivator and the clarifier when things get hairy:
I do what I do for who?
2 comments:
Awesome!! I'm a planning fanatic...and you've challenged me to look over my schedule of to-do's and instead of seeing a list of tasks...see a list of ways that I can serve and honor God. This could be life changing!!
thanks for this challenge. i do need to ask myself more often "WHO am i doing this for?"
Post a Comment