Creating a Plan for Personal Success

How do you define success?

It could be a certain amount of money, a specific title, or a desired lifestyle. Maybe success is raising your family and pursuing your hobbies. Here’s the thing about the word “success”—the definition can be unique to each individual according to what is important to them.

Traditionally, success is defined in only one way: money and status. But success is bigger than that. Each person has unique values, goals, and dreams which will define their own personal success. As a business owner, entrepreneur, or investor, you will need to create a plan for personal success.

Taking time to think about and plan for personal success is an important step to help you achieve those goals.

Let’s look at some ways to create a plan for personal success.

What is Success?

As mentioned, success is different for each person. This is because we all start at different places and have unique backgrounds, skills, and opportunities. It’s not realistic to have one definition of success, because of the different starting points. Here are some ways that we can think about success:

Wealth or a certain level of income.
Status gained from formal roles or titles.
A desired lifestyle to pursue passions, such as traveling.
Raising a family.
Leaving a Legacy.
Completing a degree or other educational achievement.

This is a non-exhaustive list, as there are many metrics for success. What’s important is to really focus on what is your definition of success. Try to identify what is most important to you and what aligns with your values to determine what success means.

Why it’s Important to Achieve Goals

Achieving goals is important for a few reasons. It can, of course, help you achieve the things that are important to you, such as wealth or income, your lifestyle, or any of the other factors of success.

But beyond that, the act of setting and achieving goals can be an important thing in and of itself. Goal setting has been studied extensively for its benefits on motivation and behavior.

Several study’s over the years have looked at how setting goals can be easy, but achieving them is hard.

They typically found that there were two aspects that led to change—motivation (the will to change) and cognitive (the way to change).

As part of your plan for personal success, think about those things. Determine what will motivate you to achieve goals (your will) and what steps will you take to get there (the way).

What to do When Things Don’t Go as Planned

There will be times where you don’t reach your goals, whether because of external circumstances or because you didn’t have the right mindset. This happens and is normal—after all, you’re not a robot who can simply go about life achieving everything without a problem.

Review your goals. Were they realistic? Consider using the SMART goal framework to define goals that are achievable. This has been used for awhile and helps breakdown the steps.
- S- Specific
- M- Measurable
- A- Achievable
- R- Relevant
- T- Time Bound

Take time to calm down and clear your head. Turn to activities you enjoy, like exercising, music, or art, to get out of a negative mindset and come back to the problem with clarity.
Seek help and support. Just because it’s your personal success plan, you can still bring in support from others to help you reach your goals.

How to Stay Consistent

When creating a plan for personal success, you need to stay consistent. Start by writing out your plan—What does success look like for you? Then, as you determine steps to get there, make sure you are identifying the time needed to invest.

Once you’ve set up your plan, stick to it with consistency by using what motivates you. Perhaps you enjoy checklists and visual representations of progress.

Or, maybe you are motivated by rewards after certain milestones, such as a fancy meal out after hitting a sales goal. Tap into your motivations to stay consistent to your plan.

Success is highly individual, which makes it important to create a plan for personal success. This helps you identify what is important to you, what you will do to get there, and how to stay motivated and consistent on your road to success.

What is your definition of success?

What is part of your own personal plan for success?

You’re on the right path and exactly where you’re supposed to be at this moment. Congrats! You’re one step closing to your personal success.

Areas of Review

Takeaway

Big picture takeaway points

Success is different for every individual.
Goal setting is an important step for success.

Reflection

Self-reflection questions to think more about the content

I would consider myself successful if I could achieve …
In order to get there my first goal should be ...
My plan for achieving success would look like this ...

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