As I begin today’s column, it is important that I briefly discuss the overall plan that I will be using to present the How To Plan Your Days concept to you (a concept being a collection of thoughts and ideas.) If you can somehow get a “feel” for my thinking and see the whole picture, the benefits will be far greater in what you would achieve just reading one column at a time.

          I hope that you clearly understand the essence of the total life-planning concept. As a human resources consultant and professional speaker for more than 40 years, one thing I have found to be consistently true is that, down deep, most people want to be a success. To be sure, I have encountered many people who were discouraged and disillusioned and did not think it was possible for them to win, but even these people really wanted to succeed.

The word “success” means different things to different people, which I will discuss later). One of my first basic questions was ,“What really makes a person successful?” To discover the real foundation of success I began to collect information, listen to tapes, do personal interviews, and read everything I could find on the subject. Slowly but surely some answers began to emerge. After several years, I reached the conclusion that there were two distinct areas to consider: the person and the career, job or activities in which the person wanted to be successful. Obviously, no one person can be successful at everything. To have some order or framework for this research, I decided to enlist the aid of six open-ended questions. Please notice how they lead logically from one to the other.

1. Who Am I? 2. Where Am I? 3. Where Am I Going in Life? 4. How Will I Get There? 5. What Kind of Person Will I Be? And lastly a very important question 6. What Must I Do to Make Success Happen? Now, please, understand that my planning approach has been developed after many years of experience. I am a great believer in “motivation” and know that it is a very important ingredient for success. However, if we are not careful, it can be very superficial and shallow and can wear off very quickly. Motivation is somewhat like taking a bath, we both know how long a bath lasts, even a great one.

While short- and long-term planning, on the other hand, may not be as exciting in the beginning, it will without question provide a more stable foundation for long-lasting and permanent success, and I have to believe this is what you want. As you work through this process, in time you will have a better self-image, a more positive mental attitude, a better understanding of our economic system, a financial plan for your future, better awareness of your personal priorities in the areas of spiritual things, family, career, and income and you will know what you must do well each day, to keep living a happy, rewarding and successful life. Now, I ask you, what could be more important than that? There are many, many more great things to come. Clip this out and save it please.

—-

(Jim Davidson is an author, syndicated columnist, and Founder of the Bookcase for Every Child project. For a personalized copy of Jim’s latest book “Keep Your Fork” send $25 (includes P&H & TAX) to Jim Davidson, 2 Bentley Dr. Conway, AR 72034.)