Today’s Task

This Task is going to get you thinking beyond the end of the January Jump.

It has been a pretty intense Bootcamp, with almost daily tasks over the past few weeks, and it isn’t possible for most people to keep up that pace long-term on top of their normal commitments. But there will be things from your personal Task List that haven’t yet been completed, and perhaps even some new tasks that you’ve realised would be worth adding to your list.

You will need a plan to keep ticking things off, so that you don’t lose all the great momentum created during the Jump.

Enter the 100 Day Plan!

When a CEO steps into a new role, they are often armed with a 100 Day Plan. One hundred days is said to be the perfect amount of time for a plan because it is long enough to get things done but short enough that you can really focus on it without being overwhelmed.

For the same reasons, I recommend you think about your next steps in a batch of 100 days. What do you hope to achieve in the next three or so months?

Things that might feature on your plan:

• Completing your CV Sort Out Task

• Proactively linking with people on LinkedIn

• Completing your Get Meeting Ready Task

• Setting up, and following up, more of your meetings with key people

• Completing or updating more of your LinkedIn profile – education, languages, skills, groups, etc

• Completing the remaining tasks on your Personal Task List.

Goal and Task Review

Before you do anything else, I’d like you to take a few moments to look back at the Goals you set at the beginning of the Jump, and consider how far you have already progressed.  Are you on track to reach your goals?  Have you learned anything new during the Jump that might impact on your goals or how you approach them?

Now is the time to adjust or expand your Personal Task List as needed.

Create Your 100 Day Plan

You may well now have a longer list of tasks than when you set out, despite ticking some things off along the way.  Don’t get disheartened.  On the contrary, you should feel pleased that you have clarified the steps you need to take to effectively achieve your goals.

Timewise, remember that all these things don’t need to be done at once. You’ve achieved a huge amount by doing a little bit every day during the Jump, but you may decide that one evening a week or an hour every weekend is what you want to invest in your career.  Doing a little bit regularly is usually a good approach but feel free to adapt when and how you do it to suit yourself.

Block out your chosen slots in your diary from 1st February onwards, and then prioritise and schedule the tasks that you are going to accomplish over the next 100 days (ie before 11th May 2018).  Be realistic about what you can achieve, and make a contract with yourself that you will do them.

And, if you can keep going, step by step, before we’ve reached mid-2018, you will be well on your way to achieving your BHAG career goals!

Find out more about the January Jump, and see previous tasks, on the January Jump homepage.