In a previous video we established your long term, year and quarter goals, based on what is important to you (If you’ve not already watched that, do so before this). Now it’s important to examine your life from a different angle – your ongoing experience, or your lifestyle.

Goals are important as they help you become more self-directed. They help you design the life you want, live more in accordance with your values, and gain greater agency over how you spend your time. But there is a risk in being too goal orientated. You can lose sight of the present, and forget that the ‘good life’ is more about the journey than the destination. Besides, it’s no good achieving your goals if you spend most of your days unsatisfied, or unhappy.

All too often I notice people not spending enough time doing the things they love. Busyness is often to blame, but perhaps its because we’ve not yet acknowledged how important these things are?

  • Look again at your values. What is most important to you? What do you love doing and how do you want to be spending your time?

Now design your ideal day

I’m not talking about a perfect day ‘off ’ – I mean, based on what’s important to you, what would a great day look like? Some food for thought: What’s your morning routine? What do your lunch breaks look like? Are you still checking email after 8 pm? How do you spend your evenings? Are these all things you’ve chosen?

  • What would your ideal day include or feel like?

Design your ideal week

Now, what about a good week? What are the activities that you would like to do every week? Include professional and personal. Professional might include team coaching or 1-1s, planning, working on key clients, nurturing relationships.. personal may include time with people you love, evening with friends, going on dates, going to the gym or yoga, time spent reading, being creative..?

  • What would your ideal week include or look like?

Design your ideal month

You get the picture – what are the things you’d like (or need) to do each month?
Breaks, experiences, adventure…?

  • What would your ideal months typically include?

See how this ‘bottom-up’ approach also provides a valuable perspective?  It also ensures that while you have clarity on your goals, and are making progress towards the things you care about, you are also living your days, week and months in accordance with what is important to you.

Now the challenge is to create your days, weeks and months to reflect what you’ve identified as important. For this you will need a mixture of successful habit formation, and effective planning and calendarisation.

Have fun and enjoy the process.

Phil

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