Creating An Effective Action Plan - Part 3 Of 3

In this article, we look at a few loose ends in action plan creation, while preparing you to leap into action.

Schedule out Your Accomplishments

Once you've drawn up your action plan and shared it with your team, here is a simple tip you can use (and you can share with your organization) as an added measure to ensure that milestones and tasks get accomplished on time. Have each person grab their schedule or day planner or smartphone and schedule out their accomplishments.

For example, the person who is in charge of creating and overseeing the employee sales contest would take their specific action items and tasks and schedule them out in their planner. If the sales contest is scheduled to begin on April 1, the responsible employee would schedule an action item like this on the morning of March 31: email sales staff with an enthusiastic reminder about tomorrow's sales contest. The success rate of your action plan will positively skyrocket if you can have each person involved do this one simple step.

Work Your Plan and Don't Stop Until It's Complete

Once your plan is established, shared with the team, and accomplishments are scheduled, the next step is simple: get into action, move forward daily on your task list, and follow up with all involved personnel to make sure tasks are being accomplished effectively and on time. This step is absolutely critical to the success of your project and the achievement of your goal. If you don't follow up, you will find that important factors simply fall through the cracks. At times, leaving just one milestone incomplete (or completing it behind schedule) can set back your entire project by days or weeks, which can unfortunately mean missing the target for your overall goal. Regular follow-up is essential in order to prevent this.

Change the Date if You Must, but Never Give up on the Goal

Occasionally, circumstances or unforeseen events can arise that throw a wrench in your ability to meet deadlines, complete tasks and achieve your goal. If this happens, do not get discouraged - revise your plan and continue working to meet targets and move forward. This is the key to maintaining momentum! Remain solution-focused and find a way to get there, no matter what. If you absolutely must, you may want to extend the target date for your goal, but never give up on the goal itself. In many situations, things shift in the final hours that create the possibility of a miraculous eleventh-hour achievement of the goal, but unfortunately, many people miss out on these "miracles" by giving up too soon. Stick with it and keep your team motivated!