July 24, 2019 –
“Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.” — Benjamin Franklin
Early on Saturday morning as I walked in my neighborhood, I noticed this message on an elementary school message board, “Students Progress Reports Due This Week.” My mind flashed back to a time when I was in elementary school, and students received a “report card.” Now they are “progress reports.”
I got thinking about there is a big difference between a progress report and a report card. The progress report is a measurement of movement toward a goal or goals; a report card reflects degrees of passing or failing. As I reflected on the message of the elementary school board sign, I realized that I prefer being graded, using a progress report. The measurement being: are you more productive today than yesterday; better this week than last week; more fruitful this year than last year?
The best way to make sure your progress is to ask three questions—“yes” or “no.” If you answer “no” to any question, then ask, “Why not? And take corrective action.
AM I MAKING PROGRESS TOWARD MY GOAL?
To make progress toward your goal, you must first set a clear, well-defined goal. Having a goal sharpens the focus of your plan and helps to avoid wasting effort on irrelevant and conflicting issues.
AM I MAKING PROGRESS TOWARD GETTING ORGANIZED?
Organize your goals. Organizing forces you to simplify your plan and create priorities. Knowing what to do, when to do it, where to do it, and how to do it boosts your progress toward goal achievement.
AM I MAKING PROGRESS TOWARD INTEGRATING ACTIONS?
Always connect the actions to your goal. Focus on activities that bring you closer to the goal and drop activities that don’t contribute to goal achievement. Strive for daily and weekly improvement in all your actions.