How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be In
The Shortest Time Possible
Management consultant and business author Ken Blanchard once said, “Feedback is the Breakfast of Champions.” That’s great advice, and it’s just as true for managing your own body as it is for managing a company. The formula for success in any endeavor is simple: First, you set a specific goal and designate a time limit for its achievement.
Second, you devise an action plan or strategy for achieving your goal. Your goal and your action plan must both be in writing.
Third, you launch at once, whether you think you’re ready or not, and you begin taking efficient daily action in the direction of your goal. That brings you to the fourth step – and it’s a vitally important step that too many people forget: Get feedback on your results. Feedback means measuring your progress at frequent intervals to see if your action plan is working. Put another way, it means you have to “keep score.”
Imagine a company where the owners did not meticulously keep track of sales and expnses on a daily basis. They probably wouldn’t be in business for long would they? Imagine a basketball game where there are no hoops and the players just run around the court, dribbling, passing and so on, but there is nothing to shoot at and no way to keep score. Ridiculous? Well, it’s just as silly to start a fitness or weight loss program and not keep score as it is to play any game or run any business without keeping score.
The way to get from where you are to where you want to be is to get continuous feedback to see how you’re doing, adjust your action plan according to your results and repeat the process until you reach your goal.
