In Back to The Future II Marty Mcfly went to 2015. It seemed like a long way off – in the future – when I went to watch the movie back in the last 80s.
Well here we are, welcome to 2015 – Happy New Year. 15 years into the new century – what have you achieved in the last 15 years ? What are you proud of ? What have you learnt ? How have you developed ? Are you much further ahead than where you thought you could be ? Where could you be if you had done things differently – maybe with more energy, more focus, more structure.
Looking forward 15 years – where do you want to be ? If you are standing in 2030 – in the distant future (or is it?) – what do you want to have achieved ? What do you want to have done with those years ? What do you want to have learnt or seen ??
If I look at my own situation, 15 years ago I was a junior sales manager and I had never run a marathon. Where am I now – I am a Sales Director for Europe (which was a job I envisioned having many many years ago), I have run 50 plus marathons, completed 100 mile runs, desert multiday runs and Ironman triathlons.
So much can change in 15 years. If I had planned it would it be any different ? If I had changed some of my thinking about what I was capable of would it be different ? No question it would.
So how can we ensure that the next 15 years are our best ever ? Firstly we need to have an idea of what we want , Where we want to be, What we want to be doing. It doesn’t have to be detailed, but it needs to be a rough direction, and it needs to be inspiring.
To get to that place in 15 years time, what would you had to achieve on the way ? Where would you need to be in 10 years time, or 5 years time or at the end of this year ?
Then you need a rough plan. How are you going to reach these milestones ? What skills do you need ? Who do you need in your “team” ?
Look at 2015. How can you make this the best year you have ever had ?
You need to start by being clear on what are the 3 or 4 things that you must achieve in 2015. Not just financial or business goals – although these are important and you should stretch yourself to big bold goals in this area. You need goals for your health and your personal growth / development.
Writing down goals is so essential, it makes them real, and then reviewing these goals regularly is key, but more importantly is to ensure that you are taking action to try and achieve these goals every single day.
Think of the small actions you took 15 years ago that took you in a direction which made a massive change in your life ?
Have a great week – enjoy planning your journey to the future.
