Do you have trouble staying focused or keeping on track? Sometimes it is easy to lose sight of what is really important to you when you are swamped with the minutia of daily living. What if you had a clear illustration of your goals in front of you at all times? A graphic image can help to encourage you, stay organized, say no when you need to, and get more out of life.

Using a paint program, Corel Draw, Fireworks or something that can make a graphic file, put down the 10 things you want to accomplish in the next 6 months. It can be anything from your wildest dreams to things you really want to accomplish, achieve or acquire. Take that graphic file and make it your wallpaper, the background on your computer screen.

What this will do is force you to see, everyday, what you want and where you want to go. It will slowly, deeply imbed itself in your psyche. It will work on your subconscious, like motivational tapes played while you're asleep.

Even more powerful, take a piece of paper and write a letter to yourself. Tell yourself exactly what you want in the next 3-6-12 months. Sign it and put it in an envelope, but don't seal it yet. Take that letter and carry it around with you for three days. At night put it under your pillow and sleep on it. When you wake in the morning review the letter. At noon, review it again. At night before you go sleep review it one more time.

At the end of three days I want you to review it one more time, make any corrections or additions to that you feel you need to make, sign it one more time (and date it) and then seal it and put it away in a secret place.

In 3 months, take it out, break the seal and review it one more time.Cross out anything you've already accomplished or acquired. Add anything you feel needs to be added. Sign and date it again, put it in a new envelope, seal it and put it away again. Do this at the 6 and then 12 month stage.

Another powerful technique is to "anchor" success and energy. Every time you feel really good, confident and enjoy a success - mentally stand up and yell "YES!" Soon you will have established a psychological anchor which your can "trigger" whenever you encounter a situation where you need an extra push of positive energy.

Odds are, that having "psychological" reminders will help you accomplish a lot of things. It puts a reality to what you dream about and provides a simple roadmap to what you want and how to get it.

Published: April 30, 1999

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.

Editor's Note: This article reflects the opinions of Rob Fore only and not necessarily the views of this or any other publication, organization or Website owner.