Set short-term, incremental goals. Work up to larger plans later. Never put yourself under the gun right from the get-go. If you do... discouragement will be right at your doorstep. Youll quit! Remember your New Year's resolutions?

Set incremental time frames. Short-range goals are very important. Begin the first month and increase a little bit each succeeding month. Dont give up too early in the game.... give yourself a chance to succeed.

Set UP too big a goal and you know..... nothing happens! Most of us throw in the towel rather than work slowly to the next plateau. Remember all those BIG goals in the past.... how long did they last?

SMALL BITES

Achieve success in small bites. Step-by-step your confidence builds. If you fall down.... get back up. Miss the target and make the correction. Go again with renewed enthusiasm and determination.

Some of us 'workout'.... at least we have good intentions.... before we get out of bed and our feet hit the floor. Strong guys like to "Bench" press. Big "boys" enter strong man contests. Physical fitness is (should be) a major goal for everyone. Keeps our bodies in good working order or it soon will begin to "break" down.

Our motivation can fall away in small bites, too. Dont lose heart in what you are trying to accomplish. Set a daily time to be at the gym. Walk a mile in your neighborhood. Lift those weights "downstairs" or in the "recreation" room. Be sure to 'journal' every day's accomplishments.

REASON-ABLE

Are you reasonable? Most of us are NOT! We are not reasonable in setting goal limits. More is always better. Yes, it is OK to stretch. Run a block. Two blocks. Three blocks and then some. You put down a MILE on the very first day? Dont do it! Same goes for weight lifting at the fitness center.

Yes, it does look better to us in our day-timer. But not on the first day that you decide its time to get in shape. A lot depends on how long it's been since you ran a mile. For most of us, the answer is NEVER.

How old are YOU? 32, 44, 56, 68 (whatever your age) does not make any difference. The "couch" has kept you in your comfort zone for the last 5,10,20 years. Now, for whatever reason, you are on a new exercise "kick". You are going to show the "world" that you still have it!

You are a prime candidate to have a heart attack in the middle of the street. Be fair to yourself and good to your family. Slow down. There is No rush after all those years when your body was not showing its age UNTIL recently.

NOTICE IN SLOW MOTION

One day at a time our bodies "sag" or "droop" a little more than the day before. Cant even see it happening. A slow process but very sure in a non-threatening way. Only after many years do we begin to "kinda" notice the change.

Eyelids droop. Bags form under the eyes. A little "flab" falls under the arm. Cant seem to see our feet any longer. Love handles have suddenly surrounded us. Hair color begins to match our former dye color. Roots are showing through or turning loose.

Nose hairs are out of control along with hair in the ears. Your Barber now seems to find a lot more places that need trimming than before. Things that never HURT in the past have suddenly taken on a life of it's own. New aches and pains arrive daily.

REACHABLE GOALS

Forget about joining the NFL. Olympics are out of the question. Dont count on buying a 20-speed bicycle and climbing Mt. Mitchell or riding the Blue Ridge Parkway in the mountains of North Carolina. Keep driving the church bus if you want to see the leaves "turn" and take the Senior citizens with you.

Dreams are great. Go to a NFL football game and you can see yourself on the field along with the other BIG guys. Sack the quarterback! Run for a long pass and take the ball into the end zone for a touchdown.

Face it! Your 200-lb. body (men) is out of shape. Maybe just a little bit! Anyway, all of us need to stay fit or "payday" is coming. Either we pay the price for fitness while it is still possible or we pay the consequences later. Our choice. No one is holding a gun to our head demanding action.

DECISIONS - decisions - DECISIONS

Big ones. Little ones. Everyday we are making decisions. Some are very important and can even be life threatening. Others make little difference over the long haul. Do you live by the rule - "dont sweat the small stuff and believe that EVERYTHING is small stuff"? I like that one! Not a bad philosophy either.

Why is life such a challenge? You would not like it any other way. Sports (football, baseball, basketball, hockey, and soccer) are all competitive. Players are challenged to win and thrive on the competition. Business is a challenge too. Trying to beat the odds and increasing profits every quarter.

In many parts of the world there are NO challenges. No jobs. No opportunities to earn a decent living. Poor conditions are rampant everywhere.

In American and other parts of the world there is prosperity and growth in the marketplace. Challenge brings out the best in us. Our competitive nature rises to higher levels. Our goal is to win. A win/win goal is even better.

BUSINESS CHALLENGES

Owners are always faced with new challenges in the marketplace. New competitors are arriving daily. Some have lots of money and power. Profit margins are squeezed to the limit. Pricing of our product or service has peaked.

Expenses are out of control. Our cost for personnel is too much. Where can we make improvements? Cut expenses? Reduce staff? Always on our mind and our worry meter is running constantly.

Goals must be in place to move our business to the next level. Employees must be challenged or they will not grow and meet expectations. Benefit plans. Insurance coverage. Expenses paid. Travel. Meetings. Industry standards. And the list can go on into infinity and beyond.

ACTION TIP: Set reasonable and reachable goals for your personal life, for your business and for your employees. Dont expect to reach the moon in a Piper Cub.

Begin at your level to set goals for the NOW. What you do today will have an impact on your tomorrow.