A plan can only be considered successful or effective after a review of the results. Just as much as we need to discipline ourselves to plan our days, we must discipline ourselves to review the outcome of our plans. Did I accomplish everything I set out to do today? How well did I carryout today’s plans? Did I give my best and do my best? Were my plans reasonable and doable? Where my plans detailed enough? Without making the process to complicated, it is good to review your day before planning for tomorrow. Each day’s review helps with the next day’s planning.
When you fall short of fulfilling your plans for a day, a review will help you to determine whether you took on too much, became distracted, or just did not put forth enough effort. A review of the day can also help you to determine whether a change in direction, strategy, or focus is needed. The better the plan, the easier the review, and the better the review the easier it is to plan the next steps. When you can look back on a well-executed plan, you become excited about the next day, week, or year. When a student has prepared well, the exam may appear to be easy, but when the student is ill prepared, the exam will be dreaded.
It is time to become disciplined for success by taking an assessment of our strengths and weaknesses, where we are, how well we are doing, and what can be improved moving forward. If we do this daily, not only will we be successful, but continual review will lead to continual success.