days – the same process and mindset applies.
I could have started this book out by teaching you how to write and spell, but that would not have benefitted you one bit. How many of us know how to lose weight? I mean really. You take in fewer calories than your body can naturally burn and you exercise, it isn’t rocket science, yet 90% of weight loss is mental not scientific. You won’t lose weight if you don’t choose to. You’re in control!
My point is that you will never finish or even start your book if you don’t have these key ingredients:
-A well devised plan/goal that you are conscious about daily
-100% commitment to that plan/goal
-Consistent desire and follow through of your plan/goal
-MOST IMPORTANT – determined mindset
So what does it take to actually sit down and write your non-fiction book or novel? This is the kind of question that is destined to get a wide range of answers, as it can be seen from numerous different perspectives. However, at the end of the day, there is just no getting around a fundamental and simple fact. In order to finish any large task, whether it’s simple or complex, you have to do it. This, of course, means that if you want to finish writing your book, you have to commit to dedicating the time necessary in order to make sure it happens.
It is an oversimplification to state that in order to finish your book you must write. There is more to it than that. You need to reorient your thinking. In short, you need to set aside the time to write. You absolutely must make writing, researching, organizing and other related issues in the writing of your book a priority in your life.
In chapter 2 we will begin to broaden your mind as to where you should start, for now, you have to start setting goals and come up with a specific plan on how you will obtain those goals.
Here are some simple yet powerful ways that you can set goals. They come from an article that my business partner Scott Brandley wrote for our Outstanding Ventures blog.
Step 1 – What do you really want?
When setting a goal, the very first question you need to ask yourself is “What do I really want?” and really think about it. Don’t just make your goal, “I want to be successful” or “I want to get in shape” because it’s too vague and there’s nothing tangible to reach for or motivate you. You can do better than that. Try to make your goal more specific like, “I want to be earning $8,000 a month by January 1st, 2012” or “I want to run 5 miles without stopping by June 1st”. This kind of goal will be a lot more motivational and give you something to work towards. It also gives you a target date.
Once you’ve decided what you really want, WRITE IT DOWN. It’s one of the best ways to hold yourself accountable.
Whether you like it or not, writing down goals is critical to your success! In fact, in 1979 there was a study done with graduates from Harvard University. They were asked a simple question: “Have you set clear, written goals for your future and made plans to accomplish them?” The interviewers were surprised to find out that:
84% had no specific goals at all
13% had goals but they were not committed to paper
3% had clear, written goals and plans to accomplish them
In 1989, ten years later, the interviewers again interviewed the graduates of that class. The results were shocking:
The 13% of the class who had goals were earning, on average, twice as much as the 84 percent who had no goals at all.
Even more staggering – the three percent who had clear, written goals were earning, on average, ten times as much as the other 97 percent put together. (Source: from the book ‘What They Don’t Teach You in the Harvard Business School’, by Mark McCormack)
Write down your goals!
If you’re saying to yourself that you don’t have time to write down your goals, then how on earth are you going to have time to accomplish anything significant? Write your goals down!
Step 2 – Why do you want it?
Coming up with a compelling reason why you actually want to accomplish your goal is just as important as the goal itself. In most cases this is actually harder to come up with because you have to really think about the true motivation behind your goal.
Your reason ‘why’ is the catalyst that physically moves you towards achieving your goal. It is the power that pushes you to keep going when you don’t think you can. It is what motivated the determined wood vendor to find a way to get to the market.
It’s also a great way to see if you’re setting the right goal. If you can’t come up with a compelling reason to accomplish your goal, then you probably don’t have the right goal.
Once you’ve come up with your reason or reasons why you absolutely must accomplish your goal, write it down directly underneath your goal.
Step 3 – How are you going to do it?
Remember the study that revealed that 3% of the Harvard graduates made 10 times more than all of the other 97% combined? Part of their incredible success was that they wrote down a plan to accomplish their goals.
This is the 3rd piece of the puzzle. You need to come up with a strategic plan on how you’re going to accomplish your goal. It should include ambitious, but realistic milestones with attainable target dates next to them.
Now, this doesn’t have to be a huge undertaking. It can be three milestones or ten. It can be three sentences or three pages – there’s no right or wrong way to do it. The most important thing is to just write down what comes to you, because in almost every case, your first impressions will be right.
Step 4 – Exponentially increase your chance of success
Now that you’ve got your goal, your motivation, and your plan all written down, you’re way ahead of the game, but you’re still not out of the woods. There are three more things you can do that will exponentially increase the likelihood of you successfully reaching your goal.
Sign and date your goal – By signing and dating your goal you are creating a binding contract with yourself. The second you sign that paper, your mind will automatically start trying to figure out how to honor that agreement. After all, you just put your integrity and trust on the line, and nobody wants to breach a contract, right?
Tell someone about your goal – While it’s very important to write down your goal, telling someone about it will help hold you accountable. It can often become easy to change or remove our goals when the going gets tough. But the odds of you following through increase significantly if you tell someone. And, just a quick side note, the more people you tell, the more likely you’ll stick to it so it’s best to tell several people.
Go for a daily ‘Power Walk’ – Power walks are special. They give you the ability to take a step back from your daily life and see the bigger picture. The best time to go for a power walk is right after you finish going to the gym or exercising. During my power walk I usually start out
