Assessments

As it's a month since I made my goals for theyear, I thought it best to check in on how they are going.

•     Live in a Safe House and Garden, free of clutter

Currently there is a mass of junk, even if it is hiding in storage.  The Garden is full of uncut lumber, and the fences badly need attention.

• ·      Have the financial resources to cover any surprises.

I have at this stage not had to use any debt to cover expenses, so far so good

• ·      Have enacted a financial plan to guarantee financial abundance

I have looked at my assets, and observed how they are performing. Now it is time to see how they can perform better.

• ·      Add maximum value to every gig I do.

I have only had a few gigs, but have remained sober, and prepared the best I could.

• ·      Have full sensory acuity.

My hearing and Sight are still compromised - tinitis and far sightedness.

• ·      Weigh under 78kg

I weigh around 83kg, thanks to a long holiday, but look forward to losing the weight

• ·      Have a strong, flexible, energetic, freely moving body.

My body is strong, but not as flexible as I would like.  Still recovering with my Achilles, but many of my ills have seemed to have gone away! Energy could be better - probably goes along with a diet that helps me lose weight.

• ·      Am an elite athlete.

I seem to manage to come last or second last in every event in which I compete!  Howeve, I wanted to compete so that I could see where I stand with other athletes of my age, and can now prepare for this.

• ·      Live in a 3 dimensional, level three marriage.

I am very happy, but would like to improve the physical side, and be more aware of Lizzie's needs in all things.

• ·      Am guiding my daughter to a wonderful adulthood.

My darling daughter is 12, and growing up so quickly.  It is easy for me to overreact when she acts out emotionally, owing to hormones or other reasons.  She has started High School this year, very successfully

• ·      Use my time to maximum effect, for play and work.

I have planned my week, using RPM.  Look forward to seeing the rewards!

• ·      Am present.

Still let my mind wander - but now I am more aware of it, and am aiming to reduce distractions.

• ·      Am an agent of change in my workplace.

I am making sure that I am doing my job as well as I can, and being positive with other people.

• ·      Contribute to the society around me both financially and practically.

I have already started to become more involved in my daughter's school band program as a volunteer.  Looking to make large financial contributions in general.

• ·      Have effective promotional material for my band.

I want to have a package that explains the band in a matter of moments

• ·      Have found the resources to finance the things I love, whilst growing my capital.

I always seem to use capital to pay for major things, instead of using the income from the capital.

• ·      Have completed my Masters of Music

One thesis to go! Work begins tomorrow, with March 31 as my deadline.

• ·      Am planning an overseas trip for the family.

Keep putting this to the bottom of the list.  Will look at my options this week.

The Gap Map: Personal Mastery Plan

I have an RPM Planner.  It's a huge filofax style planner, that requires almost an A4 size hole in my suitcase.  It is incredibly inconvenient to carry, and often makes me feel like a wander when I carry it around.

However, it does keep everything in one place, and has pages like The Gap Map: Personal Mastery Plan.

Today I filled it out again, looking at what I reckon refection would be like in different parts of my life:
Physical, Emotional/Spiritual, Relationships, Time management, Career, Finances, and Contribution.  I reckon that most of the things we do in our lives will fit into one or more of those categories.  Firstly you look at what you want, why you want it, how to get there, and possible traps, and then where you are now.  It really works.  I first did it at Unleash The Power Within in 2007, and update it regularly.  It really helps me when planning my days/weeks/years.

Using your time wisely has all to do with making sure that you are heading in the right direction with your actions - Steven Covey said that the compass is more important than the clock.  His Book "First Things First" is a brilliant explanation of this, and Robbins' "Time of Your Life" is further explanation.

Well worth a read (an implementation) for anyone wanting to achieve their dreams.

30 Day Goals

Although the time of 30 days is arbitrary (let's face it January has 31 days), I find it helpful to make specific dates.  Having said that, if something will happen on Feb 2, then avoiding the 30 day milestones seems silly.

By the end of this month I envisage:

Having a BMI of 25,
Being able to run hard on my achilles tendon
Having a healthy Iron level
Having resolved my gastritis issues
Knowing my financial net worth (done)
Knowing My cashflow, and where there might be shortcomings
Having planned my 3, and 12 month milestone goals for all areas of my life.

That Should do it!

Growing Pains

I know that whenever I need to grow, I will be out of my comfort zone. Whenever I want to achieve something previously out of reach, then it will get scary.

I have been told that it is best for me if I form a company, so that I can reap tax and liability advantages. On top of this, it has been suggested that I form one in the USA. This is so far beyond my imagination that it has left me almost paralysed.

Of course, when I think of being wildly successful financially, it all makes sense, but I am still quite afraid of it all.

I basically have until Saturday to decide upon whether I

1. Form an S corporation in the USA
2. Form a PTY LTD in Australia
3. Do Both
4. Do Neither

Fortunately, eat the end of "Time of Your Life, there is a decision making tool that I can use. I will use that tomorrow, and see what transpires.

Know Your Outcomes.....

An interesting thing has been happening today. Not new, but I really enjoyed watching the process. Do you ever find that when you are working towards clear outcomes, the Universe does every thing to help you? I hope that this is not too new agey, but I certainly noticed it today.

Firstly, I was reading an article on helping out beginner saxophone players. Sure enough, my daughter comes home from school with a sax, desperate for me to help her out.

Secondly, I needed some financial advice. I really needed to talk to my accountant, and he actually answered the 'phone personally, and spent 15 minutes with me answering all of my questions. If you know him, this is a VERY rare occurrence.

Thirdly, I rang a guy about ordering some software, and he offered to look at a laptop of mine that was experiencing problems gratis!

Planning my week has really helped with my time usage so far. The important thing for me is to know my outcomes (long term goals), and check that what I am doing now is the way to achieve them. Covey states this as "Beginning with the end in mind". If you know WHY you are doing something, it is much easier to do it!

A Great Start to the week

My week started early.

Yesterday (sunday), I actually planned out my week, or at least what I wanted to achieve from it. I use a product called the Rapid Planning Method. I basically have an old manual planner that looks like a preacher's bible, but on closer inspection is a zippered up ring binder.

Each week (well theoretically each week), I look at my long term goals, list what I need to do in the week, and then gather these action items around whatever the outcomes I am aiming to achieve for the week. I first learnt to do something very close to this from the Steven Covey Book, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, and have changed the methodology thanks to Anthony Robbins "Time of Your Life" course.

Although not perfect, I find that when I plan my week, with an eye on my long term goals, I have a week of achievement and fulfilment, and get about twice as much done compared to when I bumble through the week.

A Change of routine....

One of the books that Anthony Robbins recommends is entitled "The One Minute Millionaire". In this book, the author emphasises the importance of being an "ethical millionaire", i.e. a person who has made their fortune by providing for a need in society, and then shared 10% of their wealth with the same society. This really resonated with me - I grew up in a household that thought ill of wealth, and as a result, I have never been as well off as I could be. This concept really excited me. As a result of reading this book, I have enrolled in a course on eBay selling. I spent some of my day on this today, along with working, and then entertaining.

Today part of my homework was to form a business plan for my eBay business. I used a Project Planner from The Time of Your Life, a Robbins time management tool. It takes a bit of getting used to, but I hope that by using it, I will achieve outcomes I never thought possible.

Today was the first day that I didn't need a nap! My energy is rising with every day. We entertained tonight, so I drank for the first time in 12 days, and ate meat. I am interested to see what the effect is tomorrow.