The Power is in
the Plan
Five simple steps to getting what you want
this year.
by Roger Leslie
TWEENS & TEENS News January
2007
Do you ever wonder why some people get what
they want in life while others just keep dreaming?
Next time you’re in any classroom, look
around. Why do some friends and classmates
get what they try for— good grades,
popularity, fun— while others usually
seem lost or disappointed?
Think of life as a huge, holiday banquet.
There’s enough food and a place setting
for everybody. Do you really think some people
are born to sit at the dining room table enjoying
the feast while the rest are destined to be
stuck at the kids’ table with only tiny
portions of the good stuff? Of course not.
How do we all get to enjoy life’s feast?
Is there a magic formula for success and happiness
that only some people have figured out? No.
If there were a magic formula, somebody somewhere
would have published the ingredients or posted
the information on the Internet— and
we’d all be succeeding.
Until some miracle worker does figure out
a magical recipe for success, forget New Year’s
resolutions. Instead, follow this five step
plan and you can create the New Year you want,
no matter what your personality or interests.
Live these five steps and you shall succeed
your whole lifetime.
1. Think
Every great achievement begins with a thought.
Your mind is always thinking. That’s
your brain’s job. Unsuccessful people
complain. Successful people think about how
they could improve things.
Instead of thinking, “Why are things
this way?,” change the thought to “How
can I make things the way I want them?”
The right question invites your mind to conjure
up the right answers. Pay attention to your
ideas, and don’t discount the wild,
unexpected ones. Sometimes the most zany ideas
lead you exactly where you most want to go.
2. Choose
Because our minds are always thinking, good
ideas come to us all of the time. However,
our lives don’t begin to improve until
we choose what we want to do or be.
If you went to a music Web site and just looked
at the choices of songs, it wouldn’t
matter how long you sat there. You wouldn’t
download any songs until you highlighted some
choices. You don’t get the music until
you choose songs and take action. The same
is true of anything in life. Choosing what
you want is the first step to getting it.
3. Set Goals
What do you want your life to be like this
year? Choose something you’d like to
change or add to your life. Once you choose,
you’ll want to make a plan for getting
it. By writing down what you want and how
you plan to get it, you create a kind of road
map to take you exactly where you want to
go. That’s goal setting.
You might choose to become a cheerleader next
school year or to make the school soccer team.
Instead of just going to the gym and jumping
around a bunch or kicking a ball against the
wall, set a clear goal. For cheerleading,
you might set a goal to learn a specific routine
that you could perform on the day of tryouts.
For soccer, you might perfect certain skills,
such as learning to kick the ball a precise
distance or to block the ball coming toward
you at faster and faster speeds.
To set any goal, write it down. Be as specific
as you can. The clearer your goal, the easier
it is for you to achieve it. Here are examples
of some weak goal-setting tactics made strong.
WEAK: I will practice the piano every day.
STRONG: I will play (pick a song title) straight
through with no mistakes.
WEAK: I will swim faster.
STRONG: I will race the 50-meter breaststroke
in 40 seconds or less.
WEAK: I will get a job this summer.
STRONG: I will earn $50 per week mowing lawns
this summer.
Strong goals show you exactly what you must
do to succeed. When writing down your goals,
be specific, be clear, and you will be successful.
4. Take Action
You can think about what you want forever.
You can even write down the most concise,
specific goal. But to achieve it, you must
take action. You have to do something to get
what you want. You may dream about becoming
the next pop star, comic book writer or baseball
hero. But until you pick up a microphone,
pen or bat, nothing will happen. Until you
try, you won’t know if you have the
talent or even the interest to succeed in
that area.
Once you’ve written down your goal,
start taking action. Work on your goal regularly.
Schedule time each week to work on your goal.
Goal setting is like exercising. As you begin,
it might take some getting used to. Your goal-setting
“muscles” might need to warm up
before you feel them getting stronger. But
soon, working on your goal will not be painful.
It will be fun and empowering.
5. Take Risks
Action demands that you try things you haven’t
tried before. Even people born with natural
skills have to take risks to succeed. It was
probably fun for Tiger Woods to go to the
golfing range with his Dad and develop his
golf skills. Tiger probably grew confident
at a young age, seeing how well he could play.
Imagine, however, how scary it must have been
to compete in his first tournament against
older and more experienced players. How nerve-wracking
to be a kid with so many people watching,
and eventually reporters and TV cameras everywhere!
Yet, if Tiger didn’t take risks, he
would never have become arguably the world’s
greatest golfer.
To grow, you must take risks. Sometimes that
requires doing what, for you, is a real stretch.
It’s okay to feel nervous at first.
Being scared is a natural part of growing
up and learning something new. Go for your
goals. Once you take the risks required, you’ll
feel empowered by your courage and excited
about the new skills you develop.
You can achieve anything. This year, dream
big. Set your sights high. Then make your
dream a reality by following your plan. You
can do it in just five easy steps.
Roger Leslie (www.rogerleslie.com) is
an author and librarian. For a full plan for
living your dreams, read his award-winning
book, Success Express for Teens (Bayou Publishing).
Find it at www.bayoupublishing.com.
