Category: Project Planning

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The Unexpected Journey

I went for a drive in my car.
My navigator took a nap.
And I took no map.
Now I don’t know where we are.

It’s a silly little rhyme about ending up lost due to lack of planning and taking responsibility. But how many times have we heard this same story, only it’s about life itself? It’s deceptively easy to just start driving ahead in life without making a plan, preparing for the trip, and working together to reach your goals. And, all-to-often, we can find ourself in a place we never intended to be; unprepared, emotional, and lost.

Steps For Today® was created to help minimize the unexpected detours of living. First Steps For Success was written as an inexpensive tool to help everyone design a map to navigate their journey through life. It’s loaded with ideas, detailed explanations, and examples for:

  • Getting your home and life organized
  • Starting a financial plan
  • Building and protecting an estate

If you’re wondering where to start, somewhere in the journey, or just want to make sure you’ve got your I’s dotted and your T’s crossed, this book is for you!

Thanks for reading. Please like and share!
And remember to take the next step…
Mitch

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Check That

Near the end of last year, I had to the opportunity to talk to employees from several local gyms. Of course I  had to ask them about the impending, predictable, January flood of newly resolved patrons. Sadly, they all stated the same thing; that only a few of the new members would continue their exercise ‘routine’ past January. 

Why is it so hard to make change? Why can’t we simply just reorganize or lives and schedule to include our new endeavors? Could it be that as we age, we increasingly become a creature of habit? These habits subconsciously run our lives; imploring us to get on to the next task, without any conscious thought on our part. Experts agree that habits can be changed. But they don’t always agree on how long it takes to change them. That is why I firmly believe in a daily tool and process that, once established, helps to usher-in any change we’d like to make.

Ask any teacher how to properly prepare students to make a change to their routine. They’ll probably tell you it’s through setting expectations. Here at Steps For Today, we’ll tell you….you haven’t changed much since grade school. Having a daily routine that starts and ends with setting your expectations will help focus your thoughts and organize your activities. A tool to help establish this new routine is our ‘Today’s Expectations’ worksheet.

The Today’s Expectation worksheet is a one-sheet, pdf file, with an identical front and back. Each face of the sheet contains the following areas:

  • A place for 3 good expectations for the day
  • A place for 3 areas to focus on
  • 15 lines with checkboxes for activities to accomplish
  • 3 lines to write down expectations that were met and/or pleasant surprises
  • 3 lines to write down expectations for tomorrow

That’s it! It’s simple to use. To get the best use, we recommend dedicating 10 to 15 minutes of quiet time after waking in the morning, and before going to bed. But if that seems impossible, just print the thing out and fill it in while eating breakfast, brushing your teeth, or putting on your makeup. The point is to write something early in the morning and get the habit established.  I truly believe that once you see how much change this simple tool can make, you’ll want to give it more of your time and energy.

To download a free copy of the Today’s Expectation worksheet visit our store at: https://www.stepsfortoday.com/product/todays-expectations-worksheet/.

As always, thanks for reading.
And remember to take the next step..
Mitch

A mind-bending Scientific American article on the power of expectations, written by Gareth Cook can be found at:
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-the-power-of-expectations-can-allow-you-to-bend-reality/

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The Year of Reclamation

Last year at this time I posted about New Year’s Re-solutions. This year I’m making a focus to reclaim those areas of my life which seemed to slipped in importance, or had to set idle, while other matters were tended.

Just about everyone has some aspect of their life to which they’d like to devote some time and attention; but they’ve put it off due to more pressing matters. It may be cleaning out an old closet, learning a new skill, focusing on health, organizing your household information, or returning to an old hobby. Whatever it is, you now want to reclaim time in your life to get it done.

Well you know were going to have to make a plan….with steps…for today. It’s kind of a thing here. So get a piece of paper, or create a file on your device, to keep these steps fresh in your memory.

  1. Divide you sheet into 3 columns.
  2. At the top of each column, write one of your reclamations and draw a line under it.
  3. Next, write the steps you’ll need to take to complete the project. Be as specific as you can. You may want to include steps such as researching solutions, making phone calls, arranging daycare, or whatever it’ll take to get the project completed. When finished you can put an order to them by assigning an number to each step.
  4. Under each heading, write down what you’ll need to accomplish the task. Will you need a carpenter, dumpster, working area, supplies, education, help from others, etc.? Draw a line under these items.
  5. Now you can prioritize your top 3 reclamation projects . Order them by which you need to complete first to last. Mark the order at the bottom of the column.
  6. Mark your yearly calendar with the completion dates for each step in the project. Write these dates next to the step on your sheet as well.
  7. Last, I highly recommend telling others of your intended project. By making a public exclamation of your reclamation (a Rexclamation if your will) you create an expectation within yourself, and others, to complete the project. If they’re willing, they can become your accountability partner; tasked with reminding you of your project steps and dates.

So let’s take your vision to 2020. (Sorry! I just had to…) and make it the year of reclamation.

So what are some of your Rexclamations?

Visit the store at https://www.stepsfortoday.com/product/rexclamations-worksheet/ for a free, downloadable, copy of the worksheet described above.

As always, thanks for reading.
And remember to take the next step…
Mitch