Jan '22 Selling.2.YES

January 2022

How's that crystal ball workin' for ya in the new year?

Okay, so it’s already late January and you’re “plan-less” for the year. No problem. No panic. Come to Pappa.

Having myself started numerous years without a plan - and getting pounded because of it - I finally figured it out late in my career and assure you it’s not too late to motivate! (Hey, that could be a button!) Let’s just move forward and get it done. And because you’ll never be able to buy a crystal ball on Amazon, we must start building a plan for ’22.

Each January, I watch scores and scores of peers, clients, and friends wander around waiting for traction to start - oh no, not you…of course, not you. Two circumstances explain this phenomenon:

Work is a slog. Full stop. (No matter how you cut it, whatever your role.) We get a few weeks off during the holidays and just when we slow down a bit and breathe, January 2 is here and it takes a while to rev the engines. Totally normal, totally understood.
Most senior leadership either aren’t given the chance or know how to create performance cultures – “here’s the phone book, start dialing, come back to me when you’ve hit your number”. That’s not a plan…that’s a directive.

Since the burden of guidance and ownership has shifted from management to the individual (ahem, you), the burden falls on you to figure out how to do the spadework.

“Plan the work, work the plan!” Write that down. (Not my original quote, but I love it.)

Years ago when it dawned on me how important it was to have a PLAN, I did all the usual stuff: I read articles, books, blogs, and talked to folks about where to start and how to do it. And then I threw it all in my brain’s trash-bin…..useless, over-complicated crap! (Not that I didn’t get some value from those I consulted.) Of course, there were a few good nuggets, but I don’t do well with too much info, so I created a framework that worked for my pea brain. That’s what you’re getting here: Pea Brain solutions…yup… worth the price of what you paid for this post.

...and because you'll never be able to buy a crystal ball on Amazon, you must start building a plan for '22."

The following is the easiest recommendation on how to write your “annual plan” and the steps literally will take you five minutes to start, and five minutes of maintenance per week. You can handle that. Ready?

Open a cloud spreadsheet and in cell A1, write “WEEK”. Under it in cell A2, write “31 January”.
In the B1 cell, write “ONE THING”.
In the C1 cell, write “SUCCESS?”.

Boom. You’re set up. Easy peasy. (And of course, you can see as the year progresses, you will enter the dates for each Monday of the year in the A column.)

Of course, you’re not done, but you’ve passed a huge hurdle: you’ve started it! Good job. Virtual hugs and high fives!

Now comes the fun: in cell B2 write a description of the ONE THING you must accomplish next week…the week of 31 January. It must be specific and aligned with what is tied to the results you seek. It should be the absolute one thing you know you can achieve, but again, it has to be aligned with what you seek…the results. And it’s not a “like to,” or a “want to,” ...it’s a MUST.

For those keeping score at home, you’ll immediately respond with this observation: “Didn’t I just set up a weekly task list? Big whoop!” Well…yes, and no. You see, the point of the exercise is to get you to DO SOMETHING and be accountable for one thing each week. If I started you with seventeen horizontal fields and instructions, we’re back where we started: shopping for a crystal ball on Amazon.

Huddle up….listen…I’ve taught and coached this easy framework scores of times and while it may start as a task list, something magical happens when one sticks with this five-minute exercise each week…the PLANNER (you) evolves rapidly and learns how to edit the sheet so it eventually represents a formal plan where “goals” and “tasks” naturally get created, segregated, and worked on.

Just promise me this…create the cloud worksheet and put a calendar reminder for yourself every week to work on it…five minutes is all that is required. Let’s see where that goes. And as usual, I’m always here for ya….reach out when you need!

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Selling.2.YES

January 2022

How's that crystal ball workin' for ya in the new year?

Selling.2.YES newsletter

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