How can you make your goals actually happen? Setting goals is the easy part. You experience fun and excitement as you envision the things you will do and become. Yet, keeping your goals on track for the next year is the hard part. Between now and the arching of the goal is frustration, fatigue, and thoughts of putting it off till tomorrow - which never comes. Photo courtesy of Flickr/Creative Commons/Trekking Rinjani [/featured-image]So, before you set off to make the goals, you first have to build in a process that works for you so that you can actually focus and get something done. On this podcast I will share the process I use. Click to Listen*NOTE: If you are reading this in email, you will need to go to Itunes or my blog to get access to this show.Works for Me: Tools and Tips for Productivity and ProfitGet too many business cards? Have an iPhone? Try Cardmunch. I found this tool (recommended by Ray Edwards) that is by LINKEDIN. I love it. You take a photo of your card and forget it. They MANUALLY read the card and create the appropriate contact information and then send it back to your phone. You keep the card (in image form) and the contact. Yay! - finally clean out the drawer of all those cards![reminder]How do you deal with business cards? [/reminder]Topic of the Week: Make Your Goals Actually HappenOver the years, I have tried many things to make goals actually happen. Some worked, some didn't work. I have found that the more complicated I got, the less effective I was at reaching my goals. So here is a list of the simple tricks I am using this year. Many of these refer back to my previous post on Setting Goals for Next Year.Visual - Make the goals visual. I made a list on my whiteboard (mirror board) of all 9 of my 3-month goals.Folders - Create folders for the goals. For each goal I created a folder as I described in the previous post on Setting Goals for Next Year.Plan Ahead - Plan the day in advance. At 4PM everyday I make a plan for the next day. I try to focus on the 6 key things I want to get done tomorrow. Also, I have found that the more specific I am the better. For example, instead of saying "prep for the talk in Memphis" I might say instead "outline the 3 points for my Memphis talk."Calendar - Put time on your calendar for the first action of every goal. This first action might be simple, such as send an email or make a call.Next Action - As you complete an action toward your goal, close out that moment by defining the next action and putting time on your calendar to do this next action.Weekly Review - Do a weekly review at the same time every week. I like to do it on Friday. During the review look for things you did not get done and things you need to get done next week. Make sure your calendar is ready.Sleep on Your Goals - Review your goals before you go to bed. Your brain keeps working.Think - Take time in the morning to think on paper. I often wake up with a ton of ideas as a result of my brain working while I sleep.Actions - Leave time in the morning to take small actions. From your list of new ideas, what little actions can you take now? Do it. For example, in my thinking time this morning I realized my number one audio issue with my podcast is an echo from my new office/studio. So I took immediate action and ordered sound damDale Callahan, Ph.D.Business Coach for Professionals Ready to Take Control Helping you move from stuck to in-demand — or start something of your own. Grab the Idea Engine: 7 prompts to find your next move Book a Next Step Strategy SessionDirector of Engineering Management @ UAB (205) 790-8447 dalecallahan.com LinkedIn

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