Start with the end in mind. We have talked about this a lot on the blog: it’s critical to understand the big picture about where you want to go. This ensures your smaller goals and activities align with the bigger picture. For more tips, read this.

Keep score. Without a measuring stick, it’s impossible to know if you are gaining or losing ground. Metrics allow you to understand your progress and how quickly you are making that progress. Identify what attributes equate to success in your goal, and develop metrics around it. This could be deals won, pounds lost, or hours spent prospecting.

Grow Incrementally. The key is to keep growing. It doesn’t have to be by leaps and bounds, though Gary did give tips if you want to really get your growth jump-started. To grow you have to increase your activity. With increased activity comes increased results. It’s really a numbers game. If you aren’t working on activities to help you reach your goal, then you won’t move any closer to it.

Understand time management. Being in charge of your schedule is critical. The most successful people plan their day, write it down, and stick to it. When you start each day with a clear plan, you are telling your day what to do rather than your day dictating what you do.

Avoid shiny tin foil. It’s so easy to get excited about great ideas and jump from one to the next. In fact, I fell victim to it this evening as I updated my website. When the video was taking too long to load, I started reading a book. Then I remembered that I wanted to create some 9-5 mugs, and so I started designing those. I kept jumping from activity to activity, never totally focused on what my schedule said I should be doing. Stay focused. Oh, and if you want a mug, check it out here.

Jana Axline is Chief Project Officer at Project Genetics and the author of Becoming You. Through her leadership musings, she inspires audiences to grow as leaders and ultimately achieve who they were created to be. For more information visit Project Genetics.