People say you can’t predict the future.
But you can.
Time always wins.
2023 has been an interesting year.
Perhaps just what we needed after 2022.
Year end represents a big opportunity to ensure your ‘financial lawn’ doesn’t become any more unkempt then it may already be (given any downtime you have is quite-rightly spent doing things you love, with people you love), and getting on the pathway to success.
So I want to share a visual and mindset that’s served me and countless others well – and could help you too.
After all, progress tracking isn’t just about setting goals and making plans (and definitely not resolutions).
We’ve got plenty of tools for that.
Sure, goal-setting and planning are crucial, but what truly separates success from drifting into the unknown is how meticulously you track your progress.
Back to how we can predict the future…
By the end of the next 12 months, you’ll find yourself on one of two paths, and surprisingly few factors decide which one.
You’re either going to be in a green zone (your ideal outcome) or in a red zone (crisis). You may think the pathway between where you are and where you want to be is a straight one, but it’s not. Time bends and compounds everything, good or bad, it doesn’t care.
And so, if you do drift – you don’t act, you don’t make decisions – your future will invisibly suffer.
Drift is sneaky; it creeps in without discomfort or noticeable warning signs.
The danger lies in the fact that drift always leads downward, and with time, it compounds, creating a steeper decline.
Think about not cleaning your teeth – first nothing happens, and then later, they begin to fall out. The underlying rot is impossible to see unless you’re a highly trained dentist but it’s always there, causing damage.
Individuals who make great decisions and act, drive things upwards on their green line and have a significantly higher likelihood of achieving great success.
You might be on the red line, sliding backward due to aimless drifting, or you could jump onto the green line, moving forward with decisiveness.
The real question is, “Which line are you on?”
Success boils down to choosing green line behaviour every day.
Falling off the green line doesn’t just happen; it’s a result of our daily actions.
Unfortunately, many people fail to monitor their progress over the course of an entire year, not knowing whether they’re on the right track or veering off course.
So why not navigate your entire year by tracking progress?
By doing so, you’ll make actual strides toward your goals.
The difference between a good year and a phenomenal one often hinges on how effectively you execute your improvement projects.
At various points throughout your project, when you reflect on how you’re doing, you’ll be in one of three possible situations.
You’ll swim positively and deliberately along the green line…
Float along the amber line…
Or sink, slowly but certainly.
This won’t happen just as your projects come to an end. It’ll unfold gradually at first and then accelerate significantly towards the end. The curve compounds and steepens in the direction it’s heading.
We move forward through deciding.
We move backwards through drifting.
How far ahead or behind you end up in 2024, depends on two key factors:
- Your daily, weekly and monthly rhythm – the pattern of activities shaped by either decisiveness or drift.
- Time – as the outcomes of your decisive or drifting rhythm accumulate and compound over time.
We all start projects with great intentions.
How you behave determines how they’ll end up.
We’re here to help you identify the right pathway and overcome obstacles to get the greatest possible certainty for your financial life moving forwards.
If you implement this mindset across all your projects, you’ll be amazed at the impact it has.
Here’s to ending the year on a high and stepping confidently into the exciting possibilities that 2024 holds!
The good thing is that right now, as you read this, you’re as close to the red line as we hope you’ll ever get.
