Action Planning

What is Action Planning?

Goals for an Action Plan
Action Planning Model
The Main Steps in Preparing an Action Plan
Example Action Plan

WHAT IS ACTION PLANNING?

You've got to be very careful if you don't know where

you are going because you might not get there.
Yogi Berra

Action planning is a process which will help you to

focus your ideas and to decide what steps you need to take to achieve particular goals that
you may have. It is a statement of what you want to achieve over a given period of time.
Preparing an action plan is a good way to help you to reach your objectives in life: don't worry
about the future, start planning for it!

It involves:

Identifying your objectives

Setting objectives which are achievable & measurable.
Prioritising your tasks effectively.
Identifying the steps needed to achieve your goals.
Using lists.
Being able to work effectively under pressure.
Completing work to a deadline.

Having a contingency plan

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Writing down your goals turns them into a plan, not a dream.
An effective action plan should give you a
A study of 327 job seekers by Daniel Turban
concrete timetable and set of clearly defined
of University of Missouri College of
steps to help you to reach your objective, rather
Business found that writing a plan at the
than aimlessly wondering what to do next. It
start of your job search, has a big impact
helps you to focus your ideas and provides you
on success: make a plan and continuously
with an answer to the question What do I do
assess your progress.
to achieve my objective?.
"Thinking about a plan, acting on a plan and
Its OK to have several objectives, but you will
reflecting upon that a plan were important
need to make a separate action plan for each,
early in the job search while having positive
otherwise things get confused.
emotions were important later in the job
search"
Although here we shall be applying the
techniques to careers, it can be used effectively
You also have to expect rejections and
to help you to reach your goals in many other
develop a coping strategy in advance. This
aspects of your life.
should help maintain positive emotions
during the process to improve your chances
The following are all valid goals for an
of getting a job. Positive emotions may help
action plan:
job seekers behave more confidently and
cope better with stress, thereby
To get more involved in a student
responding more skillfully in interviews than
society to get to know more people.
job seekers with less positive emotions
Deciding what skills I need to improve
and deciding how I will improve them.
People dont have strategies, they dont
assess their plans and they dont think about
When careers action planning there are
their strategies and reflect on whether its
likely to be three main areas for action plans.
working or how to make them work better.
These are:
They just dont do it."
Choosing the career you wish to enter.
Working out a strategy to help you enter this career e.g. application and interviews.
Developing skills that you need to acquire to allow you to enter the career of your choice
and to be successful in it.

Its essential to have clear goals in place rather than just vague descriptions, such as saying you
want to grow. Success in any walk of life is based on putting your goals first. ... Find out what
you want, decide exactly how you will achieve it, and let nothing distract you from the end result.

James Caan

ACTION PLANNING MODEL

There are many different models of action planning,
In a survey of 50 start-up businesses,
but a good starting point is shown here. Action
those with a plan outperformed those
planning is a cyclical process, and once you have been
without even if the plan was not
through one cycle, you can start again at the
followed!
beginning. Of course, in real life its not quite as
simple as this. The process is more organic and stages
Working together to develop a plan
will overlap, or you may change your goals as you
builds stronger relationships and a
progress, and you must be prepared to revise your plan
deeper shared understanding of what
as circumstances dictate. The stages are as follows:
needs to be done, so if unexpected
things happen individuals can make
WHERE AM I NOW? This is where you
good decisions.
review your achievements and progress, and
undertake self-assessment.
The best return occurs when just
one percent of the time taken to
WHERE DO I WANT TO BE? This is
carry out a task is spent on
where you decide your goals.
planning. Too much planning can be
procrastination: delaying actually
HOW DO I GET THERE? This is where you
getting down to taking action.
define the strategy you will use to achieve your
goals, and to break down your goal into the
"In preparing for battle I have always
smaller discreet steps you will need to take to
found that plans are useless, but
achieve your target.
planning is indispensable" President
Eisenhower (overlord of D-Day
TAKING ACTION. This is the nitty gritty
landings)
where you implement your plan!
By failing to prepare, you are
WHERE AM I NOW?
preparing to fail.

Benjamin Franklin

The cycle begins again with a redefinition of your goals........

The main steps in preparing an action plan are as follows:

 Have a clear objective. (Where do I want
A study on 1979 Harvard MBA students
to be?). To be motivating a goal needs to
asked them, "Have you set clear,
be challenging enough to stimulate us, but
written goals for your future and
not too difficult enough to be demoralising.
made plans to accomplish them?"
It should be just outside your comfort zone:
stretching but not highly stressful. Be precise
Only 3% of the graduates had written
about what you want to achieve,
goals and plans; 13% had non-written
List the benefits you would gain by
goals and 84% had no specific goals at
achieving your goal.
all.
Start with what you will do NOW. There is
Ten years later, they were interviewed
no point in having an action plan that will
again. The 13% of the class who had
start in six months time.
goals were earning, on average, twice
as much as the 84% who had no
Define clearly the steps you will take.
goals. And the 3% who had clear,
("How do I get there?) Think of all the
written goals were earning, on average,
possible things you could do to take you
ten times as much as the other 97%
closer to achieving your goal, no matter how
put together.
small. Break down any large steps into
smaller components, so it doesnt seem so
difficult to achieve. What is the biggest obstacle? What could go wrong?
Identify the end point for each step and give yourself a small reward for achieving it!
This could be sweets, clothes, a gadget, book or CD or meal out with friends.

Arrange the steps in a logical, chronological order and put a date by which you will
start each step. Put these dates into your diary or onto a calendar. Try to set yourself
weekly goals: what research you will do into jobs, what skills you will concentrate on
learning etc. Its also a good idea to get into the habit of planning a timetable each
evening listing your tasks for the next day or two.
Motivation is what gets you started.
Habit is what keeps you going.

Jim Ryun

A journey of a thousand miles begins

with a single step.

Lao Tzu

Success is the sum of small efforts,

repeated day-in and day-out

Robert Collier

Action generates the impetus for further

action: if you want something done
quickly, give it to a busy person.

The best time to do something is usually

NOW!

Never confuse motion with action.

Benjamin Franklin. Work smart rather
than hard. Rather than running around
like a headless chicken from one idea to
the next, pay attention to quality rather
than the quantity of effort you put in.

Life satisfaction is greatest for those

involved in short term goals which are
enjoyable, not too difficult; and done
in cooperation with others. Focus on
one objective at a time and always have
the next goal in mind. To accomplish
more difficult tasks, break them down
into components. The most satisfaction
comes from pursuing an objective, not
simply from achieving it.

Ari Kiev

It is good to have an end to journey

toward; but it is the journey that
matters, in the end.
 You need to consider if your plans are
attainable and what would happen if you
Ursula K. Le Guin
failed to achieve your goals. Try to map out
several paths to your goal, then if one
becomes blocked another is available: build Unless you have a definite, precise,
flexibility into your planning. People tend to clearly set goals, you are not going to
strongly underestimate how long a project realize the maximum potential that lies
will take, especially if working in a group within you.
because they tend to visualise everything
going to plan with no problems. Think Zig Ziglar
about the type of problems you might
encounter at each step. What are the Well begun is half done.
barriers in the way of achieving your goal?
What you would do to overcome these Mary Poppins!
problems? Concentrate 10% on the problem
and 90% on the solution. Try to turn every One of the advantages of being
problem into a challenge and every challenge disorganized is that one is always
into an opportunity. having surprising discoveries.

Review your progress. Keep a diary or blog Winnie the Pooh

of your daily activities and record your
progress as things happen: this keeps your plan as concrete as possible. A good time to
start your review is about two weeks after you have begun. Review how far you have got
towards your objective, identify any mistakes you made and what you can learn from
them, look at any new ideas or opportunities that may have presented themselves and
then revise your plan to incorporate these.
Mix with positive people who will encourage you to keep going! Tell your friends or
relatives about your goals. They will provide support when going gets tough and will
also give you an incentive to keep going as you'll feel embarrassed if you have to tell
them you've given up!

When the going gets tough, the tough get going!

If you take a stand that is visible to others, a drive arises to maintain that stand in order to look
consistent. Public commitment makes people stubborn:

A hardened smoker desperately wanted to stop smoking. She made a list of all the people who
she really wanted to respect her, then got some blank cards and wrote on the back of each card,
I promise you that I will never smoke another cigarette and signed it. She gave or sent the
cards to her family, friends and boyfriend. Stopping was the hardest thing she had ever done, but
every time she thought about having a cigarette, she pictured how all the people on her list
would think of her if she broke her promise. She never smoked again.

If you write your commitments on paper you tend to live up to what you have written down as
written commitments require more effort to make than verbal ones and there is also a reminder
for you. The process of writing things down also seems to embed the commitment in your brain:

"Set a goal and write it down. Whatever the goal, the important thing is that you set it, so you've
got something for which to aim- and that you write it down. There is something magical about
writing things down. So set a goal and write it down. When you reach that goal, set another and
write that down. You'll be off and running." Amway Corporation
 From the excellent Influence: The Psychology of
Supportive text messages can double
Persuasion by Professor Robert Cialdini
the chance of someone successfully
quitting smoking, according to a study
Beating Procrastination
published in The Lancet Over 10% of
smokers who received encouraging texts
Motivation gets you started but habit keeps you
such as "you can do it" had quit after six
going.
months, but only 4.9% who did not have
the same support gave up. Dr Caroline
Procrastination can involve the fear of failure,
Free, who led the trial said: "Text
perfectionism ("I don't want to get anything
messages are a very convenient way for
wrong"), lack of self control, not breaking projects
smokers to receive support to quit.
into smaller parts, and underestimating how long it
People described txt2stop as being like
will takes to do things.
having a friend encouraging them or an
angel on their shoulder." Similar text
Once you have started an activity, your mind
messages could be used to help people
constantly nags away until you have completed it.
modify other behaviour.
Once it's done, your mind clears it away, like when
you close down a program on your computer. So
Put "Eat Chocolate" at the top of your
start an activity and just spend a few minutes on
daily to-do list. That way you can be
it initially and this should help to beat
sure that you'll accomplish at least one
procrastination. As the Mastermind quizmaster says:
of your tasks.
"I've started so I'll finish!".

Visualisation techniques can help prepare neural pathways in the brain for when the task is
performed for real. However research has found that visualising just the outcome decreases
chance of success so you need to imagine the steps along the way as well. Oettingen and
Mayer found that students who reported fantasizing about success made fewer job applications,
received less job offers and had smaller salaries. So you need to realistically assess problems that
could be encountered as well.

Building in rewards for completing the steps in your plan

Its a good idea to think of a small reward to give

STEP 1: Some nice chocolate
yourself for completing each step above to keep you
STEP 2: More chocolate!
motivated. The bigger the step, the larger the reward
STEP 3: Time in gym to burn off
could be.
chocolate!
STEP 4: Book by favourite
Setting yourself concrete goals to help others
author
makes you happier!
COMPLETION: Meal out with
friends to celebrate!
Researchers at Stanford University found that
setting goals to help others that are achievable gives
you a greater sense of satisfaction that having an
abstract concept of helping others. Givers experience greater happiness if they have concrete,
specific goals of benevolence: making someone smile or increasing recycling rather than similar
but abstract goals such as like making someone happy or saving the environment. This is because
when you pursue concrete goals, your expectations of success are more likely to be met. Jennifer
Aaker, the lead researcher said: 'A prosocial act can not only boost the happiness of the
recipient, but it can boost the happiness of the giver as well.' Pursuing happiness without clearly
defined goals can actually make us more unhappy due to unrealistic expectations.

EXAMPLE COMPLETED ACTION PLAN

Date I My
MY OBJECTIVE IS: To choose my future career!
expect to reward for
complete completing
TO ACHIEVE THIS I NEED TO: this step this step
List the steps you need to take. Be detailed and specific (not I'll
by will be
contact some employers, but Find email addresses of 5 local
employers who have marketing departments & contact them"
I will tell my plan to: my three best friends, my parents!
3rd
I will start my action plan on (date):
March
Step 1. I will use the Prospects Planner computer guidance system 4th Some nice
to help me to identify jobs of interest March chocolate!
Step 2. I will use the "What can I do with my degree in ..." pages 6th More nice
to find out what jobs graduates from my subject can enter March chocolate!
Time in
Step 3. I will pick up booklets from the Career Service on some of 9th gym to
the careers suggested and browse through these. March burn off
chocolate!
Step 4. I will use the Careers Network to arrange a day shadowing Over Book by
the work of a graduate in the Career that seems to be most of Easter favourite
interest. vacation author
Meal out
Step 5. I will see my careers adviser to discuss the ideas I have got By 10th
with
from the above and to narrow these down. May
friends
What problems am I likely to face? What will I do to overcome these?
Fear of life after university. Have procrastinated too long and now realise that I must take
action or miss opportunities.
Will I be able to arrange a suitable work-shadow? If nobody suitable in the Careers Network,
may have to contact companies directly for help.
 Now write your own action plan ......
Date I My
MY OBJECTIVE IS:
expect to reward for
complete completing
TO ACHIEVE THIS I NEED TO: this step this step
List the steps you need to take. Be detailed and specific (not I'll
by will be
contact some employers, but Find email addresses of 5 local
employers who have marketing departments & contact them"
I will tell my plan to:
I will start my action plan on (date):
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Step 5
What problems am I likely to face? What will I do to overcome these?

"World class performance comes from striving for a target just out of reach., but with a vivid
awareness of how the gap might be breached. Over time, though constant repetition and deep
concentration the gap will disappear, only for a new target to be created, just out of reach once
again."

"Bounce", by Michael Syed

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