Blue Sky Your New Year Resolution
Posted on October 27, 2011 by Scott Graham, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.
Try out a new strategy for setting goals this year!
Dateline: October 2011
I have a different goal setting strategy for you to try out this year.
One thing that I believe is missing from people’s goal setting strategy is time. Most people who develop annual goals usually do some combination of the following: sit down, work on ideas over an evening or a couples day — some even over a week, write them out, make sure they are SMART, sign up for some goal-oriented support website and even post them on their wall.
These are all great except for one thing: time. If you are a goal-setter like I am, the pressure to get them done may result in missing a significant opportunity that you wouldn’t consider if you gave yourself the gift of time.
So between now and the end of December 2011, get a little notebook that you can carry along with you — big enough not to lose but small enough to easily keep near your side. When you are driving, on the transit or walking to work, take a couple of days each week to turn off the music, news, sports or whatever distraction you have to pass the time and devote the time to yourself, thinking about possibilities.
This will open up your mind to blue-sky thinking. You have probably heard the phrase that an idea came “out of the blue” — this is exactly what that phrase refers to — you thinking is as wide as the sky).
If you are a techno-fiend you may want to try a service like Mindmeister (http://www.mindmeister.com). You can set up a free account to accumulate your ideas for next year The nice thing about Mindmeister is that your ideas are linked together in a non-linear (mindmap) fashion — a process which opens you up even more to possibilities.
I started this process already and I can tell you that I have already had some wild ideas for things to focus on in 2012. I non-judgmentally jotted them down on a scrap piece of paper and came home an dutifully loaded them into my 2012 Goals Mind Map. (I would have never thought of this had I just sat down at the kitchen table to bang out my goals in one sitting). There’s two months left in 2011 — I can’t wait to see what else will float down to me!
Looking for more ideas?
Check out this 2007 video of me talking about creating your best year ever! (http://compasscast.blogspot.com/2007/06/best-year-ever.html)
