Over the past few weeks I have had coffees with a number of people who wanted to talk about being better at what they do – in some cases in and for their business, in some cases in their careers. When I asked them what they wanted to achieve in a specific sense, none of them could tell me. And none of them had a plan.

Whether it’s in business, for your personal career or in life generally – you need to have a plan. To do this, it helps to have a goal, an outcome you want to achieve this year, in the next five years or what you want to be remembered for.

For business, it’s usually about having a number of goals across the spectrum of the business including financial, people based, product or market focused and so on. Once the goals are set, consideration is given to the capabilities and the constraints in and outside the business in order to develop a strategy to achieve the goals. Measurable milestones together with allocated responsibilities allow a business to track its progress.

A plan for one’s personal career(s) is not really any different. One needs to set goals and then develop a plan on how to achieve them – whether that involves up-skilling, networking, increased exposure, finding a coach or sponsor to assist and so on. And you need to keep yourself honest – where are you up to? How many coffee meetings have I had this month?

And then there’s a personal life plan, one that you take with you through all the different aspects of your life. Do you have a personal mission statement, something that defines the way you do things? What do you want to be remembered for? Have you thought about what drives you, what you’re passionate about? Having a clear understanding helps to achieve all the other goals you may have along the way.

Stephen Covey’s second habit* is to begin with the end in mind. Knowing where you want to go keeps you on track and focused. There is less chance of distraction if you ask yourself “will this get me where I want to go?”. It also allows for “disruption” – because you can still change the plan if it will help you achieve your goals.

The other important part to having a plan is to articulate it. Create something visual or put it in writing (I am a fan of “strategy on a page”) where you can see it or regularly check it. It will keep you honest.

If you’ve gone to the effort of creating a plan (and it does take some effort – whether it’s pulling together pieces of data in the case of a business, or your own data and reflections for a personal or life plan), then stick to it. But honestly, if you don’t like the plan or there are “disruptive influences” then make a new one. Just make sure you have a plan.

Coffee count: 484

* Stephen R Covey “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”