We are in the middle of our 3 part Action step towards our Best Life. Remember the three questions we are covering?

• How do you feel about where you are right now? (Ready)
• What do you think about where you are right now? (Set)
• What are you going to do about where you are right now? (Go)

I am using the first three of Stephen R. Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People as the template for these three elements of the Action step. The first part was Be Proactive, and I broadened it a little to embrace Preparation to Act, which was really about getting yourself in the best place to Act. How do you feel about where you are right now, and are you ready to Act?

The next question invites you to move beyond your feelings to your thoughts. Today we come to the second part of  Action or Stephen R. Covey’s second habit – Begin with the End in Mind. Alternatively I could say, “Think ahead to what you want Your Best Life to Be” – think right now, in the middle of the Action step about the Result you want to achieve in our CAR process. This is how we get Set to Act.

Begin with the End in Mind

We have taken a good look at our Current Circumstances. We have examined the complete range of Current Circumstances (from our person to other people to organisations and to nations) in all three rings of our life circus – Our Private Life, Our Work, our Worthy Causes.

There may be parts of our Current Circumstances that you are delighted with, parts that you are barely satisfied with or parts that you hate. Dissatisfaction can be a good thing – it can be inspirational dissatisfaction. 

If there are things you want to improve imagine you are on a push bike with the back wheel against those things you want to improve. You are in the rider’s seat and you are pushing on the pedals, you are pushing to get away from the things you don’t like. But without the front wheel you could go in circles. You need to consider the front wheel and steer it towards the result you want.

So let us consider what results you may wish for. I suggest that there are four orders of result you could consider – all beginning with the letter S:

1. Survival – from crisis
2. Stability – predictable – settled
3. Success – growing, going somewhere
4. Significance – of value and recognised by others

I accept that you may not wish to be Significant in every aspect of your life, but I offer the four levels of S as a reference point for you to think about.

Here is another poem with similar meaning, this time built around the letter P:

I’m a live Pulse
In a live Pod
On a live Path
With a live Purpose
For alive People

Pulse means my heart is beating, I am alive, I have Survived. Pod means settled, Stable, comfortable surroundings. Path means progress, growth, Success. Purpose means you have brought benefit, something meaningful, Significance to yourself and other People.

Points to Ponder

In what areas of life do you want:

• Survival?
• Stability?
• Success?
• Significance?
• Why / Why not?

Copyright © 2021 John Harris