I always end up where I plan to go. As most readers of this corner know, I am a male and consequently, the whole idea of asking for directions is entirely unnecessary. Going around in circles from time to time is just me getting to know the “lay of the land.” I often like to get to know the neighborhood a little better. The idea of actually stopping and asking for help – are you kidding me???? I don’t know why anyone would want to do that. So, I am exactly where I had planned to be. Some of that planning didn’t start until 30 seconds ago; most of it didn’t exist a year ago.

A few thoughts pop into my mind as we end 2020 and consider what 2021 will bring: we’ve got this. We handled the challenges that we were presented with and actually thrived. After all – here we are – no road map, no plan to survive a pandemic, making the best of limited social interactions. We’ve got this! We have proven to ourselves that we can survive and we are willing to persevere and move forward. Let’s stop focusing on all the things we consider negative about the past year and congratulate ourselves – we have made it and we can make 2021 a fabulous year because we are stronger than we could ever have imagined. We have been honed in the fires of 2020 – nothing can stop us now. So, OK world, bring it on, but maybe this year I will look at creating some goals and plans for that next move forward, understanding that I can change direction along the way if I need to. After all, like you, I had to change direction a few times in the last 12 months.

There are a few people in this world who can succeed without any goals or plans. They are either lucky or made some kind of otherworldly deal. For the rest of us, having a plan is probably the only way to succeed in what we want.

It makes no sense to persevere if you choose the wrong plan or decide on no plan at all. By setting goals, you can strive to complete them, which often requires perseverance. This doesn’t mean that all the goals or tasks will be correct. But, you can find alternatives when needed. At least when you have a plan, you have a reason to pursue them.

There are many ways to set goals, but one of the more acceptable ways is to start with high-level goals. Then, for each of those high-level goals, define the tasks that it would take to accomplish those goals. Set milestones so that you can measure how you are doing at each step. It’s okay to make adjustments along the way, even to the high-level goals. But, the key is to use this as a roadmap to keep going. That is the best way to get to where you want to go. Perseverance will play a big role here.

If you give up at any point, don’t beat yourself up too much. Either start over or if possible, pick up where you left off. When you finally accomplish your goals and milestones, the success you feel will come from knowing it required perseverance to accomplish. The kind of perseverance that we have grown to understand and undertake in 2020.

Sometimes, people don’t get back to their goals. Either they gave up too quickly, or they weren’t meant to make them happen. If this happens to you, find out what you really want from those goals and if they are right for you. It is okay if they aren’t, but just make sure that you didn’t give up because it was easier to do that. You don’t want to live with regrets.

If you find that you are constantly giving up on your goals, you may want to get some professional help. This can either be in the form of coaching or in extreme cases, you may want to seek the advice of a counselor. Sometimes this can make the difference in breaking the barrier of quitting before meeting your goals. A mentor or counselor can give you the necessary guidance and may even be able to help you define better goals. It could be you just weren’t following the right plan.

So, don’t tell my wife this, but maybe she is right. I could always stop at the gas station and ask someone to tell me how to get there. Or, I could use the car’s GPS but that would require opening and reading the owner’s manual. There’s always some catch isn’t there? The real catch is that we can use 2020 to power the rest of our life because we’ve got this!