If you have been a reader of our blogs, you know that we have been taking you through the Life and Career Planning Model© which is in our book Time To Get Real! Assuming that you completed each part of the model you would arrive at this point, which means that it is time to start analyzing what you have accomplished so far, documenting the sessions you have learned and beginning to think about your action plan. When you complete each section of the model you develop important findings and lessons and from them, you note actions that you might take as well as changes in your life and career that you need to implement. In other words, if you use the book Time To Get Real! and the model you arrive at a point where you’re about to take the steps that are necessary to bring about the changes you desire in your life and in your career. This section of the book allows you to respond to specific questions which you have read in the book or completed using the model. You might want to consider responding to some of these questions right now. For example:

• How do your interests, the things that give you joy, and your personal values intersect with one another?

• In what shape are your current relationships?

• Does your current life balance reflect who you want to be and how you want to live your life?

• Are you in a personal and professional position to be able to achieve your life’s purpose?

• Are you going to be able to achieve your desired career outcomes where you work now? If not, what are you going to do? What are your options?

• Are there areas of your own personal or career development that you must focus on?

• Do you have a financial plan? If not, when will you have one?

• Describe your current work environment. Are you relatively happy? Do you like your job? Does it impact your personal life, including your relationships with family and friends, the way that you want it? Are you making enough money? Do you have enough free time?

If you follow the Life and Career Planning Model©, at the end of each model topic you have prepared a list of potential actions. These actions can flow directly into your life and career plan. The model asks you to list between three to five opportunities that emerged from the analysis, lessons, and observations you have made. We caution you not to censor yourself. Even if something sounds impossible or difficult, list the potential actions anyway if they can help you get to your stated goals.

One of the things that arrises is the identification of those things in your life that may be scaring the heck out of you. Alex recalls that in one of his graduate-level classes, during a discussion about personal and organizational values, a woman told the class that she was aware that she had, for some time, had a values conflict at work. She described being treated poorly by her supervisors in very demeaning ways. When asked whether or not she approached her supervisors or someone in the Human Resources department, or anyone else in the company about this situation, she said she had not. She was concerned that if she did, she might lose her job. Finally, she looked for another job and left the organization. This terrible treatment by her manager had been going on for seven years. It was a bad time economically to move, and she was afraid to move ahead on finding a position.

Here is a person afraid to face a key issue at work and afraid to face an external environment to seek a new job. That fear cost her seven years of her life in worry and abuse. Some of you may be in similar positions. If something scares you, it is a barrier and it must be surmounted. Remember, it is a strength, not a weakness to recognize and admit that some things may scare you. If you don’t have the courage to name that thing, it will remain with you and impede your progress. The actions that you produce are the key for you to be able to move ahead. They will help you, along with support from your key relationships, to build up the courage to get done what has to get done.

The analysis and learning section of the Life and Career Planning Model© is the precursor to the development of your personal action plan. If you haven’t done so already, we strongly encourage you to read the book Time To Get Real! and engage with the model. The last step that individuals take is the development of their life’s strategic plan. Our next blog post will describe how one goes about developing such a plan and what it contains.

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