Plans, Ideas and Solutions

Preparing a plan, developing an idea and coming up with solutions are all important, but unless you do something with them, they don't really matter. The best ideas remain only ideas unless they are put in to action. The best plans remain only plans unless they are put in to action. Solutions will only work when they are put in to action. Many of us stumble on the last step because it is the hardest to do. 

Doing requires all the risk. Your plans, ideas and solutions can all look amazing on paper, but there is no risk involved until you take action on them. We need people who can come up with them, but we really need people who can act on them. Take the risk and see if they actually work. If they don't work, you have to come up with more plans, ideas and solutions, but you'll have a little more knowledge when developing them. Keep pushing until you find some that do work. Implementation is much more difficult, but is the only way your plans, ideas and solutions will have value. Otherwise, they are just words on paper.

Are You Ready For 2012?

We are quickly coming to the close of 2011. Before we know it, 2012 will be here and ready to go. Besides holiday gatherings and maybe some last-minute gifts to make or purchase, do you have anything left to accomplish in 2011? Do you have goals laid out for 2012? Many of us have goals and dreams that are separate from our professional lives. Shouldn't we do everything we can to succeed in accomplishing them? 

For me, the next week is going to be spent traveling and figuring what I want to accomplish in 2012. I sat down a few weeks ago and came up with some ideas of things I would like to accomplish (and it was a pretty huge list). This coming week, I will narrow down the list (if possible) and put a plan of action together to accomplish these items. I know many of us do this type of thing with work, but this will be the first year where I have one for things I do outside of work. Goal-setting and planning are the only ways I will stop procrastinating and do the things I want to do. Instead of saying it can wait until tomorrow or next week, or next month, I will have a plan in place with deadlines. I hate missing deadlines, so this should force my hand to actually put in the work.

As this year comes to an end, I think about all the changes 2011 brought to my life and how 2012 will bring even more. For many, 2011 was a very difficult year. For others, it was a great year and brought lots of happiness. For everyone, January 1, 2012 is a fresh slate, a new year, and will probably bring it's share of difficulty and happiness. With a plan and some lofty goals, I know I will have a little control over what the year brings. It's impossible to know everything 2012 will throw at me, but I can focus on the goals I have set and make sure I do everything in my power to reach them. Don't we owe it to ourselves to accomplish as much as possible in 2012?