Where you end up in life is like 99% on YOU and your actions. The other 1% just so happens to be the “shit happens” percentage. These are typically things you couldn’t change or stop. But as Stackers, we NEVER focus on things we can’t change. It’s not worth our energy trying to push a mountain. Leave it be. But this boulder over here is our cup of tea. The 99% boulder that’s picking up speed as it hurls down the hill we call LIFE.
A lot of people like to skip around this topic because it hits them right in the gut where it hurts if they’re honest with themselves:
WHERE YOU ARE IN LIFE CURRENTLY IS ENTIRELY YOUR DOING.
I’m not talking to people that have been through something out of their control. I’m talking to people who know they cheated themselves and sold themselves short. The people who know for sure they cut corners and now they can see where it’s hurting them. (A lot of people in their 30s are waking up to this…REGRET. if you’re under 30, do the work to not follow their mistakes). The people that know they should have studied a little bit harder so they could perform better and get better results in life. The people that know they could have spent less time partying and being lazy and more time taking control of their life. I think everyone eventually wakes up one day and they have a thought.. The premise of that thought depends on how hard (and smart) they worked prior to this wake up moment. If they put in work, it’s usually “I love where I’m at in life” or “I’m soooooo glad I did xyz when I was younger”. If they skipped the work, you don’t hear too much, they just wear the regret on them like a costume they don’t want you to see. It’s not pretty either.
If you don’t want to wake up at 30.. 40.. 50.. or 85 years old with regrets, then you need to plan accordingly. You get the most out of life by doing the most. The more experiences you have, the more knowledge of the world you gain. So how do you continuously gain experiences and do more? YOU PLAN. AND YOU PLAN A LOT. People that consistently make plans know they don’t always go as planned. But that’s ok. What matters is the end result was accomplished. You went from point A to point B (whatever that means to you). If you have 6 different things to accomplish this week, the likelihood of you accomplishing these things is A LOT higher with an action plan vs without one.
Example situation:
You have to take a 40 hour class to gain a license to start a new job.
With a plan: Outline a path of execution. Figure out the best way for you to learn the material; flash cards, 15 min study breaks between 45 mins of uninterrupted studying, practice quizzes, tutoring, etc. Break down the 40 hour class into sections. Plot out a study plan based on time you have and when you take your exit exams. Making a timeline for all of this and sticking to it.
With no plan: Your week is scattered all over the place. You don’t know where to begin. You just run back and forth putting out fires. By the time you get to studying and learning your material, you don’t have an efficient way to tackle the material. It all seems like too much because it is 40 hours in front of you and not 10 days of 4 hour study sessions broken down over the next 3 weeks. The material seems overwhelming without an action plan. This allows you to fall further behind in your studies, fueling your anxiety, which makes it harder to complete the exam, let alone sit for an interview… because you don’t know the damn material… because the class was intimidating. Pathetic.
Think of this on a grander scale. Instead of it being a plan for a 40 hour licensing class to get a better job, it’s a 5 Year Plan mapping out how you plan on getting your degree and hopping into a certain industry. Or maybe it’s your 5 year plan on how you plan on pivoting from your dead end job into your recession proof career.
It all starts like this; you identify a problem, somewhere you want to make a change in your life. Or you just want to work towards something that you really want. Here are the steps you usually take:
1st you think: WHERE DO YOU I SEE MYSELF IN 5 YEARS? What do I want to do/be?
2nd: HOW DO I GET THERE?
3rd: (this is where you make a plan..)
This is where FSO comes in with a little of an extra helping hand :)
This isn’t a concrete plan, more of an outline as you plan and look up to see where you need to be and what you need to be working on roughly.
How To Map Out A 5 Year Plan: The Stacker Way
Step 1: Define What Is Important To You
Break down and clearly define your goals. What are you working towards? What’s important to you? You have to be very specific so you know exactly what you have to do. The main categories (FOR ME, and a lot of other people):
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