I recently went to a sales training where the speaker asked everyone if they knew what a 90-day plan was. A majority of the room raised their hands. He then said, “Keep your hands up if you ever have written a 90-day plan.” About ⅓ of the hands lowered. His last statement was “Keep your hands raised if you have COMPLETED a 90-day plan.” A handful of people kept their hands up.
I noticed that some people think they know how to create a 90-day plan but have a hard time including the productivity formula in their 90-day plan of action.
A 90-day action plan is important in the goal-setting theory. If you are creating a 90-day plan for this quarter, read these goal-setting tips on how to be consistent each day to increase your chances of reaching your goal. So put on some productivity music and let's get started!
Creating your 90-Day Plan
Choose only 1 main goal to tackle. Overwhelming yourself with more than one goal will have you spread too thin leaving you feeling frustrated and defeated.
Be sure to use the S.M.A.R.T. approach to goal setting. Make your goal Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely. This is one of the core tips for goal setting.
Take the goal that you want to accomplish at the end of the 90 days and reverse engineer a strategy. Start by breaking down the tactics to reach the goal to 30 days, then weekly, and finally daily. When it comes to goal setting what are the key results you want to achieve?
As you create a strategy, identify the tasks you know you must do but hate to do. Brainstorm how you can complete these tasks while doing other more pleasurable tasks. For example, I hate folding laundry; therefore, I fold laundry while listening to a personal development book which I love to do. If you really want to go to happy hour with friends, then tell yourself you must complete whichever task you need to get one step closer to your goal before heading out. This is one of my favorite productivity tips.
Be specific about what you will do, when you will do it, where you will do it and how you will reward yourself after. For example, you will run one mile right after work at the park near your home before you indulge in Netflix. This is a technique for how productivity can be increased.
Consequences can be a great incentive for not completing habits that will help you reach your goal. The same goes for rewarding yourself for taking action on habits. If you miss a workout or a deadline, pay your coworker, friend, or spouse $25. If you make your mark, then put $25 into a “me” fund to reward yourself with a treat. This is great for developing habits to change your life.
Visible reminders such as laying out your planner to read each morning is a good way to stay on task. Having a productivity to-do list works. Also removing visible reminders like having no junk food in the house makes it inconvenient for you to fall back into bad habits that won’t get you closer to your goal.
Repetition is how habits are formed in the brain so make sure you practice these productivity hacks and goal-setting activities every time you set a new goal.
Review your habits and progress each week to remember the purpose of your 90-day plan. Are you staying on course? Is this, in fact, the direction you want to continue to go? Is it getting you where you want to be? Productivity can be improved by asking the right questions and adjusting.
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