The fall season is cool...literally and figuratively. If you’re a sports fan it’s a wonderful time with football getting into full swing, baseball division playoffs and World Series, and basketball just around the corner. The number of games on television is a channel surfer’s dream time come true.
In business, the fall is like three seasons in one. It’s a time to check progress on the goals and objectives you’ve set for yourself earlier in the year. It’s time to make the final push for achieving those objectives you have not yet met. And it’s a time to begin thinking about plans and goals for the coming year.
Many people get stressed out this time of year because of these 3 challenges. Juggling plans for the future, while making the final push for your goals, and realizing everything you could have done differently or need to improve. Whereas in sports you may have the luxury of surfing around to different channels to experience all the major events, in business you really do have priorities. You need to focus on achieving your goals for the current year first.
Don’t lament what hasn’t been finished; just realize that a lot of business gets done in the fourth quarter. Give it your best effort and most of your focus and concentration; you may be closer than you think. Although you may make some time for looking at the new year it should only be when you are doing everything you can to achieve what you need to right now. If goals went unaccomplished, don’t look back with regret. Review the situation, assess areas of growth or development, learn what you can, and move on.
This is the beginning of creating your own reality. Although I had a friend who used to try this when we were young, believe me you can’t effectively drive forward down the road when you’re looking in the rear view mirror.