The Plan, Do, and Review (PDR) is a process you should do every month to help you stay on track with your goals. Goals allow you to master your time instead of being a slave of it. They help you plan and design your life so you don’t fall into someone else’s plan for your life. They will help you run your day so your day doesn’t run you.
PDR is an easy process to do, but it takes commitment for you to do it. Do you want more control of your time? Then, PDR will help keep you on the highway because you become the holder of the reins that control time.
You must PDR your travels to accomplish any goal, project, or dream in your life journey. Your success journey is the trip you take to complete the goals and dreams you set forth by YOU. This process is a simple and disciplined 3-step action to accomplish the goals you develop.
PLAN
As you start your success journey and in your travels to success, always remember to PLAN AHEAD.
§ Predetermine a course of action.
§ Lay out my goals in detail.
§ Adjust my priorities, which helps me focus more on my goals.
§ Notify key personnel of my progress that supports me in my goals. (Seek counsel, not opinions!)
§ Allow time for your acceptance of your goals.
§ Head in the right direction of action.
§ Expect issues or problems to arise in your journey.
§ Always F.O.C.U.S.
§ Do your Review
Planning is very familiar to everyone. We plan vacations, weddings, divorces, going to college or not going to college, having a baby, funerals, etc. Most of us have a detailed plan for everything except to reach our success journey. When you plan for accomplishment, you need to write it down with details! Don’t assume you’ll remember because you’ll only remember the general concept of your goals and not the details. Take a page from the U.S. military; they plan for everything possible. The military has a detailed plan, a contingency, and a backup plan to the original plan. Before you can accomplish any part of your success journey, you must plan it out! When you plan it out, you build it three times:
YOU CREATE IT IN YOUR MIND.
YOU WRITE IT ON PAPER (MAKE THEM VISUAL).
YOU JUST BUILD IT (TAKE ACTION)!
Your plan is detailed, written, and personal for you to follow, not for everyone else. Your plan isn’t a business plan or your college class schedule. Your plan is your detailed roadmap or blueprint set forth for you to reach your desired destination. Just as if you will use Google Maps for directions on the route you should take for your vacation trip, plan the path to a successful journey too. We plan weddings and funerals with infinite detail, then plan your success journey the same way. People don’t plan to fail; they fail to plan!
DEVELOP A VISION FOR YOU
DEVELOP YOUR DETAILED PLAN
COMMUNICATE IT ONLY TO STAKEHOLDERS (KEY & CERTAIN PEOPLE)
WORK THE PLAN UNTIL IT’S COMPLETE (NO MATTER HOW LONG IT TAKES)
DO
In the words of an infamous marketing campaign in history, “JUST DO IT!” Thank you, Nike! DOing is putting your detailed plan into action! To do anything worthwhile, you must have a plan. The plan is the roadmap; your DOing is your action towards that destination. To do means that you have shaken off procrastination and are taking initiative. To continue doing this means that you have broken the shackles of procrastination towards your successful journey, so it’s one less stronghold you must deal with, and you can focus more on your actions with perseverance. Perseverance carries you to the goals you made in the Plan stage. Keep on moving! Keep moving helps you look away from discouragement and distractions. The Double D’s! So, P.U.S.H!
§ Persevere
§ Until
§ Success
§ Happens
Your action, not just any action, must be the RIGHT action. The real work involves taking educated and knowledgeable steps in the right direction. Working properly and receiving the right advice is essential for completing your job because it will save you time, energy, money, and stress. Who doesn’t want to keep all of that? Avoid analyzing your plan while you’re DOing what you planned initially. There’s a time for that in the Review stage. You see, examining your work causes paralysis from doing anything because you’re overthinking the plan. When you start overthinking, doubt and fear settle in, discouraging yourself from moving forward because fear of failure stops forward progress. When doubt and fear kick in, you become an undertaker, not an Overcomer. Fear is nothing but a spirit that toys with your emotions and holds you back from success. It’s just a tormented lie we develop within ourselves!
Inaction is the best friend to procrastination, so where there’s one, you’ll find the other. DOing allows you to stay on your toes and focus on the task(s) you set forth when you did the plan. Focus (your plan) is the key!
§ Follow
§ One
§ Course
§ Until
§ Successful
REVIEW
The Review process is where you learn from your planning and doing. You review your planning and action at least once each month in your success journey. You’ll consider checking the timing of hitting goals, where you currently are as it stands with your goals, and maybe just how much time is left. Reviewing works like a sports team or athlete taking a timeout during a game to gather themselves and ensure they’re on the right track with their game plan.
The Review is you taking a quick timeout, not a break. Taking a break is a subtle, slumbering way of saying I quit. When taking a break, you’re telling yourself, This is tougher than I imagine and I don’t think I’m cut out for this, but I need to keep my pride intact. Sounds harsh, right? It doesn’t matter how it looks; it’s very true. For most people on their success journey, a timeout is just a day or two, maybe even a week, but back on track as soon as possible. A break will last for months, years, and maybe even an eternity for quitters. Some of us more disciplined travelers can take timeouts and breaks because we’re seasoned enough with perseverance to have our plans ingrained into our existence and being.
During your review, overview your plan to ensure your success journey is taking you from Point A to Point B. Take note of where you are on this journey and how far you need to go. Take note of your progress and what has happened since you began your journey. Remember that you learn some lessons along the way, so now you have knowledge and experience to help you move along more consistently on your success journey. Reviewing also allows you to give a quick inspection of the vehicle you use on this voyage, you. Just as you would inspect your car at a rest stop when traveling, inspect yourself by making sure:
§ You’re in good mental, spiritual, and physical health.
§ You have adequate time to get the required mental and physical rest.
§ You’re receiving the proper advice, not opinions.
§ You evaluate your recent experiences.
§ Apply your new contemporary knowledge.
§ JUST REVIEW!
Also, inspect your time. Ask yourself:
§ How am I using my time?
§ How much time am I wasting?
§ If I’m wasting it, how am I wasting it?
§ If I’m wasting time, how can I stop it?
§ How do I use my spare time?
Habitual or chronic procrastinators don’t have detailed plans but are experts in creating alibis. Don’t become a habitual or chronic procrastinator, finding many reasons why you can’t or shouldn’t achieve your goals. JUST DO IT! If you’re rationalizing if your goals are too complicated, expensive, or time-consuming, accept that you’ve become a procrastinator who doesn’t have many valid reasons you could or should act. If you work hard, work enough, believe you’re smart enough, and persevere long enough, you’ll accomplish your goals with detailed plans.
By Dr. No Days Off (Dr. NDO)