The end of the year is always a good time to track your performance, both successes and disappointments experienced during the past year. It’s also a good time to map out a plan for the coming year. We’ve spent a great deal of time talking about how important it is to have a good business plan in place in preparation for the next year.

Just as a business plan is critical to success in business, so too, it’s important to have a plan for your life. The first principle of success categorizes the key areas in a person’s life. It is called a PLP, or Personal Life Plan. We’ve attached a sample sheet for each of the key areas of your life and a separate worksheet for your Business Plan. Both sheets contain examples of some of the goals you may want to accomplish during the coming year. Review the examples given for each area to get ideas and then create your own Personal Life Plan. The key categories are included in the acronym, FORBES.  The areas in the outline for personal success are as follows:

Family- The category includes your Family, Friends and other Personal Relationships. We’ve attached samples of goals for this area. Review the examples and identify the important goals you would like to accomplish with respect to your Family, Friends and Relationships.

Occupation– This category is a duplication of your Business Plan. Of course all pertinent business goals should be included in this worksheet. It’s a good idea to review the goals you had set for yourself at the beginning of the past year, and refine them for the coming year. The business Planning worksheet will help you set your goals for this year.

Recreation– This category can be the most fun. Look at the examples provided in the attachment and then ask yourself; “If money wasn’t an object, what would I want to do during the coming year”.  Be sure to Think Big, and remember, “The Greatest Limitations Are Self-Imposed”.

Body/Health– As we get busy with business and other responsibilities, we tend to forget how important it is to take care of our health. Unfortunately, many people don’t address this key area until they have a problem and it’s too late. This area is most critical because each new generation lives a great deal longer than the previous generation. If you don’t take care of your body, you could suffer for years and years as you grow older. Include daily physical activity to protect your health in your personal life plan. You won’t regret it.

Education– “All successful people are life-long learners”. Your mind is not different than the rest of your body. Just as atrophy can set in if you don’t use your muscles, so too, your mind can diminish without constant practice using it. Always remember, “If you don’t use it, you lose it”.

Spirituality- This is your sense of inner-peace. For many people it can include things like Prayer, meditation, volunteering time and treasure, and otherwise, giving back to the community and God. For others, Spirituality is defined primarily by what provides them with peace. Either way, the soul or sense of well-being must never be forgotten.

It’s remarkable just how many of your goals and dreams come true once you’ve committed to them by writing them down. Once you’ve drafted your Personal Life Plan (PLP), you may want to suggest your spouse, significant other, children and other family members also create their own Personal Goals for next year. It’s best not to be a victim of another great expression: “If you don’t make your own decisions, others will make them for you”.

Don’t delay, get a head-start by beginning to draft your PLP right now!