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Statistics show that 97% of new year’s resolutions get broken, most within the first week of the new year. I prefer to set SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely) goals instead and integrate them into a larger strategic plan for myself.

Depending on how long you’ve been a reader of She Takes on the World, you may remember me discussing my annual strategic planning process. My annual strategic plan consists of three parts:

The Strategy

My personal strategic plan consists of my vision, mission, major goals and strategic action programs to achieve the goals. I break things down by projects that I am working on and new projects that I want to develop. I create a budget, look at sales channels, and develop a marketing strategy for each project. Then I create a month-by-month checklist of milestones that need to be completed to achieve each goal. To develop your own personal strategic plan, use the following template to get started:

• My Overall Vision
• My Mission
• My Values
• Five Key Goals
• Strategic Action Programs (one for each goal)
• Milestone Checklist

The Mind Map

Mind mapping is another important part of my strategic planning process. It is a great way to set and track your goals, especially if you are a visual person.

I first started using it for project management and I loved the mind mapping process so I started using it for tracking my own goals. I use Mindjet MindManager Pro, which I highly recommend. If you don’t want to purchase mind mapping software though, Freemind is a free mind mapping program that you can download here.

The Vision Board

The final part of my strategic planning process is my vision board. A vision board is a collage of pictures and words that represent your dreams and goals. It is a way of manifesting your dreams using a key principle of the law of attraction -that your thoughts and what you surround yourself with become your reality.

You’ll notice that Ellen DeGeneres and I are at the center of my vision board. One of my new year’s goals is to be on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. She’s a big believer that anything is possible and so am I! While I’m there I want to interview her for She Takes on the World because, well, she’s taking on the world! If you’d like to help my campaign to be on The Ellen DeGeneres Show (and I would really appreciate it), you can send her a tweet @TheEllenShow or send her a message on her website.

Happy New Year and best wishes for 2010!