I found myself feeling frustrated last week while working on an Excel spreadsheet. I entered the formula, but the numbers were just not adding up. I soon realized the problem. I had not entered the “=” sign into the formula. Those numbers were just numbers without the correct information in the formula. There may be many entries and they may all be good and accurate, however, the desired result is not achieved when the clear, specific and accurate plan is not in place.

It occurred to me how this is similar to our lives. We can do many activities and stay busy. We can even do helpful things for other people or get a college degree and a good job. We can work hard and do all the right things, but if the formula is not in place, we won’t achieve the desired result. In other words, if we don’t have goals and a clear, specific and accurate plan for achieving the goals, then our lives just won’t be the success we want.

As Stephen Covey says in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, we need to begin with the end in mind. We should determine what we want to achieve before beginning to work toward it. Focus on the results, not just the actions. It isn’t enough to be doing something. It must be the right something.