Start With the End in Mind

One of my doctors at work waved the small card listing Stephen Covey’s Seven Effective Habits in front of me.

“See this?” he asked. “Let me tell you why I don’t like it.”

“Okay,” I replied with great curiosity. “What’s wrong with the list?”

“This one says ‘Start with the End in Mind.’ I don’t know what the end is so how can I start with the end in mind?”

Good point. How can you start with the end in mind if you don’t know what it is?

This gets down to setting goals and knowing what your goals actually are. Sounds simple enough, right? But we know coming up with goals and the actual outcomes can be difficult.

For example, let’s say your goal is to lose weight. Most of the times focusing on a number on a scale can lead to disappointment. It’s better to focus on your BMI (Body Mass Index) or percentage of body fat.

Let’s say you want to work on your organizational skills. Saying “become better organized” is vague. What does being organized look like to you? What areas of your life do you want to change?

If you’re not sure what your goals are, create a vision board and see what comes up for you. Once you have your goals, imagine what the end result will be, and then decide what action steps you’re going to take to get you where you want to go.

Once you have the end in mind, you’ll be unstoppable.