RISCARIO INSIDER

April 28, 2012

FROM BUCKET LIST TO BALK-IT LIST

It's tempting to wait until the last minute.

Consider filing your taxes. Here the deadline is real. You face penalties if you're late. There's media attention. You know what you have to do, even if you'd rather not. Help is available whether you want to Do-It-Yourself or pay someone do it for you.

Silent Deadlines

Most deadlines aren't well known. You may not face an immediate penalty for missing them. The onus is on you to be proactive.

Think of farming. You can't plant crops five minutes before dinner. Even pizza delivery takes longer. Since you know you must eat, you know you need to prepare in advance.

Think of saving for retirement. The magic of compound interest takes time. Delaying is very expensive. Since no one is forcing you to save, it's easy to delay, save less or both. The pain comes later. You might not be able to save if become disabled and are unable to work. Or if you don't take steps to remain employable.

Think of health. Our bodies are accommodating ... until they're not. We can't go back in time to exercise more, eat better or drink less.

Health insurance and life insurance purchases have silent deadlines. When you are likely to claim, coverage may not be affordable or available.

The Easy Solution

There isn't one. The important but non-urgent things are easy to delay when the unimportant but urgent beckon.

A Bucket List is a place to itemize what you want to do before you die and then start doing them. The list often contains exciting goals like travel.

Balk-it List

A Balk-it List is different. Here you jot down the things you don't want to do but need to do someday.

Here’s how. Set a timer for 15 minutes and start writing. Feel free to continue if the ideas are still poring out of you. Pen and a small paper notebook work well. You can add more items later simply and quickly. You may prefer your smartphone or tablet.

Next, organize your list by priority and timeframe. Electronic tools might help here (e.g., Remember The Milk or Toodledo). Finally, work on reducing your list. This is a situation where the Pick Four 12-week goals program may be just what you need.

Stop Balking

We don't know when our last minute will expire or our state at that time. We know where we are now. Are you where you want to be?

Podcast 166

direct download | Internet Archive page | iTunes

PS You could add your Balk-it List to your Bucket List

April 21, 2012

IS THE PICK FOUR GOALS PROGRAM RIGHT FOR YOU?

I just finished the 12 week Pick Four goals program. Is it right for you? Let’s explore. To start, here is how this program from Zig Ziglar and Seth Godin works.

Overall

Overall, I'm relieved. The program works well but was tougher than I expected. I'm not used to working on the same goal each day for 12 weeks. For years, I've been planning by the month/quarter/year and scheduling by the week.

I made progress on all my goals.

Ask for business (3 times a week): I have and the process helped me clarify the need for an Actuarial Insurance Review (AIR). There are now three variations: corporate (CAIR), family (FAIR) and personal (PAIR).
Improve health (daily): I made reasonable progress, especially in eating better. I still need to exercise regularly and sleep earlier [my original goal was too narrow: “Exercise (3 times a week)”]
Declutter (daily): my blue bin was fed well but this remains my biggest struggle. There’s a reason I didn’t include a photo of my desk …
Ship video (once every two weeks): I did. I’ve overcome mental obstacles and now feel comfortable editing video. You’ll see the results here. I have yet to record myself talking directly to the camera but now feel I can.

Four goals may not seem like much, but they are.

The Peers

It's very difficult to find groups without slackers or members with ulterior motives. The other three members in Pick Four were exceptional. They were committed and supportive. We showed up on time. We felt guilty if when we fell behind in a goal.

Even after 12 weeks, I don't feel that I know much about the other members. I don't understand basics such as what they do, how they picked their path or what they want to achieve in their lives. Those details weren't necessary for Pick Four but would have added context.

To use an analogy, think of going to walk-in medical clinic. Your symptoms get treated but are you really get cured? That takes longer and requires deeper probing. Perhaps you need to modify your thinking or priorities. Maybe your goals are too modest. Outside perspectives help.

Success Elements

Even if you're good at setting goals, you'll get better results when you're in a support group.

We met weekly except for a couple of times. Once we had a conference call. That saved time but was less enjoyable.

The meetings were structured and lasted an hour. Each member reported on their progress. The rest of the group asked questions and made suggestions. That’s fine but there was no time for the magic that happens outside a formal meeting.

Areas To Improve

I don't like writing on paper. I would have preferred an app with web-based synchronization (e.g., via Dropbox). An app would allow nifty analytics like graphs and also nagging reminders.

Prior to starting the program, prospective members could meet for a couple of hours to get to know each other. That would help with bonding and could weed out incompatibilities.

Would you travel over an hour to attend an hour-long meeting? I did but would not like to do this indefinitely. A Skype video conference might be a workable solution but in-person is best.

After the meeting dates are set, life will intervene --- sometimes in tragic ways. What if you can’t attend? It’s tempting to reschedule (which is difficult with four busy calendars to address) or cancel (which is easy). The fairest solution is to continue the meetings with whoever can show up.

The Schedule

We met in downtown Toronto at 6 PM. If you're driving, you get to battle "rush hour" traffic. You also get to pay both the daytime parking rate and the after-6 PM flat rate. The earlier you show up, the greater the penalty.

My monthly mentoring/mastermind groups start at 7 PM and run two hours. That feels more relaxing and allows time to eat before attending. A 7 PM start time wasn't practical for Pick Four because of busy schedules.

The meetings took place on different days and at different locations. This was inevitable because of our schedules. I would have preferred a fixed day of the week but that was impractical, even for me.

Since I plan my weeks Monday through Sunday, I readjusted Day 1 to start on Monday. That may seem minor but was important to me.

Ideal?

Pick Four may work very well for you, especially if you’re in the right group. To start, order the Pick Four workbooks. When they arrive, start looking for participants.

Overall, I prefer monthly peer mentoring with a variable end time. That structure allows deeper discussions. The monthly frequency allows time to meet goals despite the disruptions life hurls our way.

Bonus

My group is meeting for a wrap-up dinner. We'll give each other a 360 degree evaluation. That will be very valuable since we can't see ourselves. What we do looks unremarkable and routine to us but might awe others. The outside perspectives would help us value ourselves and see areas for improvement.