After a long, cold and quite frankly almost unbearable winter, spring is finally upon us. It’s hard to believe that one quarter of the year has already passed us by.

After the first three months of the year, I like to do a quick check-up or spring-cleaning. This is where I review everything in my business and personal plan that I came up with for this year and decide if I’m on track or drifting off track.

What progress have I made towards my most important objectives for this year? If I were to grade myself, where would I be, and why?

Taking inventory at this stage of the year allows me to make the course corrections necessary, and clean up my plan to ensure that I’m hitting the mark both professionally and personally. It allows me to measure exactly where I’m at, and it’s also a reality check to help me focus on where I want to be.

I’ve already accomplished some of my goals ahead of schedule, so I can give myself a well-deserved pat on the back (make sure you give yourself one as well.) Celebrating success is one of the best ways to keep yourself energized and focused so you can go into your day ready to fight the good fight!

I also get the opportunity to decide which of my goals I’ve neglected these first three months and it’s here I can make the best decisions to really springboard me through the next quarter of the year.

I know that most people have the habit of beating themselves up over goals not accomplished or not even started. This unproductive use of your time and energy is as useful as stressing about your snow blower when it’s time to mow your lawn. Let me suggest an alternative.

As you revisit your goals and objectives for the year, take some time to decide if these goals are really as important to you as you thought they were when you wrote them. Are you still as committed and excited about them as the day you typed them out, or have other more important, compelling and energizing goals come onto your radar screen that are more relevant to your professional and personal success?

Often times when I look at goals that I haven’t done anything about, it’s because I have replaced them with updated versions, and the important part is that I allow for that variation when “life happens.” Just like the cold, harsh winter, I get to forget about the past and focus on what is in front of me right now.

Please understand, that is not an excuse or a cop-out. It’s what allows me to stay productive and moving in the right direction.

There are usually goals in my plan that are still important to me, and again, rather than beat myself up over what I “haven’t done,” I get to recommit with new energy and focus on those objectives and how I plan to move the needle forward over the next 30 days so I can reap the reward in the coming months.

Doesn’t that sound like a much more productive use of your time and energy? Of course, if you still feel the need to beat yourself up because that’s that way you’ve always done it, just make sure you only allow yourself one to two minutes so you can get back to the important stuff 😉

Do yourself a favor – take inventory, decide what is still important, do some spring-cleaning and toss out what is no longer relevant, and re-commit to what is most important in your life and your business today.

Spring is here – new life, new opportunities, and some new Quarter Turns!

This week:

Give yourself a grade as to how your year has started out. Then, describe why you graded yourself that way.

Identify what goals are no longer relevant to your overall objectives and do some spring-cleaning. What new goals have come into play these past few months?

What goals are you still committed to? What are you planning to do this week to get the ball rolling in the right direction?

Get your spring-cleaning done this week!

First quarter is over. What have you done?

Thoughts for the week:

“Our house is clean enough to be healthy and dirty enough to be happy.” – Unknown

“The next time you decide to un-clutter your life and clean up your space, start with things that are truly useless like: regrets, shame and anger.” – Sandra King

“A dream is just a dream. A goal is a dream with a plan and a deadline.”– Harvey McKay

“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” – Henry David Thoreau

“Be who you are because those that mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind.” – Dr. Seuss

Looking forward to our next conversation.

Tim Furlong