Tween the Weekends: Seven Steps to Success for Tweens & Teens...

There is a powerful seven step formula that you can use to set and achieve your goals for the rest of your life. It’s a discipline, so if started at an early age these steps will become as natural to you as breathing air. Every successful person uses this formula or some variation of this formula to achieve more than the average person.

Step one: Decide exactly what it is you want. Do you want to play in the NHL, NFL, NBA or go for gold in the Olympics? Do you want to get your driver’s license by 16 and a car at 17? Do you want to go to college, university, or own a business? Do you want to go to Disneyland with your family? How about designing a kick-butt video game? The possibilities are endless.

Step two: Write down what you want, clearly and in detail. Get a journal or notebook for this. Always think on paper. A goal that is not in writing is not a goal at all. It is merely a wish and it has no energy behind it.

Step three: Set a deadline for your goal. If you’re saving for a family trip doing babysitting, odd jobs or have an after school job figure out how much you’ll need by the time you leave. Start a savings account for any goal that is material based like a car or clothes. A deadline acts as a “forcing system” and motivates you to do the things necessary to make your goal come true. If it’s a big goal, set sub-deadlines too. Some goals are worth the chase!

Step four: Make a list of everything that you can think of that you are going to have to do to achieve your goal. If you want to play in the big leagues, and feel you have the talent, how much time per day do you think you’ll need to practice to get there? Want a new laptop? How many babysitting gigs will it take to get one?

Step five: Organize your list into a plan. Decide what you have to do first, second, third, and so on. Decide what is more important and what is less important. If you want to be an engineer, you’d better be prepared to study hard, rather than play video games all night. Once you’ve made your decision, write out your plan on paper. This becomes your blueprint for success.

Step six: Do something EVERY DAY that moves you in the direction of your most important goal at the moment. Study, practice, work, play, write—do what you need to do to develop the discipline of doing something 365 days each year to move you forward, and closer to your goals.

Remember, it’s up to you to invest in yourself, and the sooner you get started, the sooner you will reap what you have sown. Invest in the best, that’s YOU!