Does this sound in any way familiar?

Last year you declared that it was THE year to grow your business. You may even have made a to-do list that included things like "Make more money," "Find new clients," etc.

But despite creating your trusty list, life got in the way, as it is wont to do, so you're no closer to meeting your goal now than you were this time last year.

In fact, just thinking about what you (gulp!) didn't accomplish makes you a little uncomfortable and disappointed. You might even have talked yourself into thinking that you simply can't find the time to start working on your goals, what with all the last-minute client challenges, employee issues and hurried attempts to do any sort of marketing at all.

This was one of the reasons i wrote my blog- uncommoncash.blogspot.com- to allow new ideas to flow through

The good news is that it doesn't have to be so difficult to reach your goals. If you know my work and/or subscribe to my newsletter, you know that I'm a planner at heart. It's the very best way to ensure that you will actually reach the goals you want to achieve this year ... and beyond.

Here is a simple, yet helpful method to plan for your own success. Just grab a pen and paper, and you're ready to roll!

1. Think about where you would like to be in 3 years. I pick 3 years because it is a reasonable amount of time in which to expect fairly large changes to take place -- such as achieving nationally known status as an expert in your field, a substantial increase in your net earnings or simply finding a better clientele that doesn't stress you out. Many of your goals may take a while to achieve, above and beyond a mere 12 months. (We all know how quickly a month can pass us by!)

So think long and hard about what you would like to achieve, first and foremost.

2. Why do you want to achieve those goals? What is your motivation? Because you really want to make them happen, or because you think you *should* achieve them?

Now is not the time to play "should'ves." Instead, ensure that every goal on your list is motivated by the right goals, namely that you want to see them come true because they are ideal for your skill set and key strengths.

What's key here is to rule out goals that you have set for yourself that actually aren't in line with your value system and dreams. It's time to concentrate on what YOU want! This will save you many hours of time and frustration.

3. Make sure you're aiming for goals that are high enough! Many of my clients initially have a tendency to sell themselves short; only after discussing their potential do they see what they can truly achieve.

It's also important to ask yourself very seriously if you are simply planning not to fail. No, you don't want to take risks that will majorly undermine you if they fail, but you do need to take calculated risks that stretch you to new heights.

4. What will it take to get you there? You want to consider the steps that will get you to each of your goals.

If, for example, you are currently making $45,000 a year and hope to achieve more than $1 million in business in 3 years, you have to determine the changes you will make in your business model as a whole that will allow you to do so.

You might need to:

* hire more employees to handle the increased business

* stop trading hours for money (or as many hours for money) by starting to help groups of clients rather than individuals and/or branch out into information publishing

* begin recruiting clients in ways that reach out to large quantities of targeted prospects rather than focusing on less time- and cost-effective marketing methods

* expand your reach outside your local area

* get to know people that can help you reach your goals

* start weeding out the clients you don't enjoy working with and concentrating on the ones you do, who typically bring in more for you while requiring less handholding

* etc.

Spell out the broad steps that you will need to make in order to move ahead, along with the amount of time it will take for you to achieve them.

5. Which skills do you need to gain in order to achieve those goals? If you want to make more money with your business with a minimum of expense, I highly recommend that you do the following:

* Establish a clearly defined brand for your business, which you can use from this point forward as the foundation for literally all of your business decisions to follow. (My High-Concept Brand Bible home-study manual will walk you through all of the steps in the process.)