At a recent conference, I once again heard these words If you dont have a plan and work that plan, you are on someone elses plan and working that plan. From my 20 plus years in business and education, one of the most consistent behaviors, I observe is the lack of a written plan.

Many people wonder why they are not successful and they fail to realize that success begins with a written Action Plan. Yet, a common day activity quietly revels the power of the written word.

Everyone has experienced the value that a simple, written grocery list has. When that written list is forgotten, the trip to the grocery store usually ends up costing one if not all of the following:

• Money because we spent more than originally planned
• Time because we walked up and down aisles that we hadnt planned
• Frustration because we failed to purchase everything on the plan
• Redos because we had to return sooner than planned
• Control because the grocery store marketing experts now are in control

This simple list not only has value, but the value is significant due to the costs associated with not having a written list. So if a simple written grocery list has significant value, then where is the written plan for the rest of your life?

If you dont have a written plan to achieve the success that you desire, then what you are really saying to yourself and others is that this simple, written grocery list has more value than your ENTIRE future!

So if you want to achieve success, begin today, and start committing your dreams and goals to writing. Keep these written lists in an organized binder and review them weekly, monthly and yearly. Since you havent used chisels and stone, you can easily review them and make the necessary course corrections because life is full of change. The secret to success is only a pen or pencil and a sheet of paper away.

Copyright 2005(c) Leanne Hoagland-Smith, M.S.

This article may be freely published. Permission to publish this article, electronically or in print, as long as the bylines are included, with a live link, and the article is not changed in any way (grammatical corrections accepted).

Leanne Hoagland-Smith

Good Day. Thanks for visiting. I hope that you have enjoyed my articles. In 1999, I founded ADVANCED SYSTEMS because I saw that performance could and should be doubled in warp time. Individuals, small and large businesses could not afford expensive solutions that may or may not deliver improved results in 12 months.

From my corporate, small business and education experiences, I recognized the individuals must have opportunities for connecting their passion to their purpose to secure the desired performance results, but many lacked the necessary skills, strategies and tools.

With over 20 years in sales management and 10 years in education, I understand how to unite productivity with profitability by developing a proactive working culture. My previous experiences resulted in cost savings through one of the first implementations of a computer software in a wholesaler distributor to the creation of a vendor performance assessment.

Since facilitating over 500 sessions, developing and editing over 25 training programs and writing numerous articles focusing on performance improvement, I bring a results focused approach to my clients. Also, I am proud to be one of the first five nationally certified facilitators of America?s Rising Stars (a Student Leadership developmental curriculum).

My passion is to help others connect their passion to their purpose to double performance. As The small business coach in Chicago, my clients have easily doubled their performance. Since our greatest resource is our young people, I am now working with large urban schools to generate the same results.

Education Background

• Graduated with honors from Purdue University with a B.A. in Education
• Earned M.S. from Purdue University in Instructional Design and Curriculum
• Published in the national trade journal, The Supply House Times, and numerous national newsletters
• Developed seminars and training on diversity, communication, leadership, sales, effective trade show behavior, networking, knowledge management, goal setting and improved educational outcomes
• Co-authored M.A.G.I.C.A.L. Potential: 7 Capicities for Living an Amazing Life Beyond Purpose to Achievement, to be available in 2006
• Working a another book focusing on performance in public education
• Speaker in a national bureau - Resource Associates Corporation