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Ind Ools: Design Your Life
Ind Ools: Design Your Life
by Rod Moore
Edited by Rachel Manktelow
MindTools.com
126 Arthur Road
Wimbledon Park
LONDON
SW19 8AA
Copyright Rod Moore, Life Design Systems 2005-6. All Rights Reserved.
ISBN 0-9545586-4-2
2nd Edition 2005
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Introduction......................................................................................................................5
Welcome to The Mind Tools Design Your Life System .............................................................5
How to Use This Workbook .......................................................................................................5
Moving On..................................................................................................................36
The Design Your Life system takes you step-by-step through the process of life design and goal
setting. In five steps, this workbook helps you discover what you want to achieve and become,
and on setting goals to help you get there. The workbook is self-contained, designed as a
standalone tool. It is supported by a 5-part audio classes (MP3s) downloaded with the workbook,
and by a weekly 5-part e-class delivered by email.
By following this system, you will establish a clearly defined set of goals for your life. You will
start out by looking at your dreams for the future. Then you will move on to crystallize these
dreams into a vision for your better future. Once you have defined your vision, you will work on
setting major goals and shorter-term focus goals to achieve that vision. Then you will then use
the comprehensive goal planner to break down your goals can into smaller, manageable chunks,
to help you start achieving them right away.
It is extremely empowering to spend time deciding what you really want out of life. And it is
extremely powerful and exciting to use this system to map out your journey from where you are
today to where you want to be. By working your way through this system, you will not only
design your life with written goals, but you will also learn a system for achieving practically
anything you want in the future. Once you complete this program, the Design Your Life system
will be part of your life, and your life will never be the same again!
The time you need to allocate to each step of the process depends very much on how much
detail you decide to go to and on your own personal priorities. The suggested approach is to first
allocate an hour or so to review the system overall, then allocate about half an hour each day
over the course of the program to develop your goals and life plan.
Most people enjoy working at the week-by-week pace of the five e-classes. Each e-class
introduces the next step and guides you through. If you want to fast forward to the next step,
simply use the workbook or listen to the audio MP3 class.
Whatever time you allocate is an investment in yourself. The time spent is worth it and will prove
invaluable. Think each step of the process through in detail and be completely honest with
yourself after all this is your life.
Print out the workbook and use it as your life design notebook. This is the place to write down
your thoughts, goals and ultimately your life design. As well as explaining each step, the
workbook provides several formats for you to use to record your life design statements and plan
your goals. You will need several copies of some of the Design Your Life formats such as the
Goal Planner. You are free to copy the formats as many times as you like providing it is for your
personal use.
Remember, on completion of this program, you will have a new sense of certainty about your
life. You will have clarity about where you want to be heading and what you need to do to get
there. You will have your very own road map and you will have built an expressway to achieve
your dreams in life.
Release the handbrake of your imagination and remove any limitations you may otherwise have.
Dont worry about the time frame for now, or how you would achieve the dream. Youll look at
those practicalities when you get to step 2 defining your future vision.
For now, just dream it and write it down! Aim to write down at least 100 things that you dream of
having, doing or being.
To help you unlock your imagination, why not use some of the tools at Mind Tools site such as
brainstorming: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCT_04.htm
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The culmination of this step us to synthesize dreams and imagine, for each area of your life your
life, where you want to be in 5 years time. You will write this down on paper as a Future Vision
Statement for that life area.
Write the statement as if it is already happened. By imagining that you have already achieved
your vision, you will create the most compelling Future Visions: The example future vision
statement below shows how to use this technique.
Now its time to define your future vision for each of these six life areas of you life:
Health
Relationships
Career
Financial
Spirituality & Beliefs
Personal Development
Future Vision Statement for health: "My health is my number one priority and everyday I
invest in ensuring my health is excellent. The date is 1 March 20XX and I am extremely fit and
healthy. My bodyweight is only 90kg and I am muscular and lean at only 15% body fat. I follow a
natural health lifestyle and as a result I have an amazing level of energy. I regularly compete in
triathlons and fun runs. I run several times per week, as well as bike ride, swim and go to the
gym. I look great, I feel great and I am in great health. I am a model of excellent health for my
age and many people cannot believe my age when asked. I am a great role model for a healthy
energetic lifestyle."
Revisit the dreams you identified in step 1 and indicate against each the timescale in
which you hope to achieve it
Organize the list of dreams by the six life areas listed above
For each area, and using the list of dreams as input, write your Future Vision Statement
using the formats provided on page 14-19 of this workbook
Your level of health and vitality has a direct effect on how you experience life. It is your
foundational building block to living the life of your dreams. What is your vision for your health in
the future?
Note: If you are in any doubt about your health, or you are considering radical changes to your
diet or exercise program, you should first consult a medical or otherwise qualified practitioner
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A vital component of life is the relationships you have with family, friends, colleagues and others.
Healthy and empowering relationships provide a sense of connection and fulfilment. Create for
yourself a compelling future vision statement of how you see your relationships in the future. You
can do this as one vision to encompass all relationships or perhaps 2 or 3 separate vision
statement for family and others.
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Your level of career satisfaction impacts heavily on your overall level of life satisfaction. Most
working people spend more time at work than anywhere else! The happiest people are those
who have an absolute passion for the work they do. What is your compelling vision for your
career in the future?
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Achieving financial security in life, and ultimately financial independence, are goals shared by
many people. Financial security and abundant financial resources can be a great enabler to
achieving more of your dreams and goals. Create for yourself a compelling future vision
statement of how you see your financial position in the future.
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Our spirituality and beliefs are formed by complex influences throughout our lives, of our society,
culture, religion, family and our inner feelings. For billions of people around the world, religious
faith defines their spirituality and beliefs. For others, religion has a lesser influence.
Whatever your spirituality and beliefs, when it comes to life design, it is an important yet often
neglected life areas to consider. If you find this a difficult area to work on, you may benefit from
first considering and writing down what spirituality and beliefs means for you. Then create for
yourself a compelling future vision statement of your spirituality and beliefs in the future.
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Having an on-going personal development program will help you achieve life long learning and
constantly strive to realize your full potential. What is your vision for your personal development
in the future?
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Goals are a way of breaking down your future vision statements into specific, achievable steps.
The Mind Tools Design Your Life system defines three types of goal:
(1) Major goals
(2) Milestone or support goals
(3) Focus goals.
In sum, all your goals will contribute to the achievement of your future vision. A major goal is
very closely linked to your future vision statement. Normally you should expect to have 3 6
major goals for each of the six life areas thats 18 36 in total. Major goals are usually quite
high level and you may need to achieve a series of milestone or support goals in order to
achieve the overall, major goal. Major goals, milestone goals and support goals are all defined
taking you between three months and five years to achieve. Any goal that can be completed in
less than three months is defined as a focus goal simply because it is currently in your focus.
Example: If you have a major goal to win a gold medal at the Olympics, then you would have a
milestone goal to be selected in your event to represent your country first. And you might have a
related focus goal to train for national trials in a few months time.
The E.P.E.G.S. formula is a way of writing down your major goals to ensure they are compelling
and motivating. This is a powerful technique. By using the E.P.E.G.S formula, you will state your
goals in a specific manner that stimulates your unconscious mind to act on the goal.
"It is now 13th February 20XX and I am so excited and full of pride as I easily run across the
finish line of the Brighton 10km fun run. My time for finishing the race was excellent at only 50
minutes. I can hear my family cheering for me and I feel great!
Now its time to define your major goals using the techniques introduced in the last two sections.
Take each of your Future Vision Statements in turn and define the goals you need to achieve
them. Use the E.P.E.G.S. formula (see page 20) to make sure they have maximum impact and
compel you to achieve them! You should aim for 3 6 major goals or support goals for each
Future Vision Statement, i.e. 3 6 for each life area.
In the Major Goal formats that follow, circle the life area that the goal related to, and remember, if
the goal horizon is within the next 3 months, mark the goal as a focus goal.
Life areas:
Health Relationships Career Financial Spirituality & Beliefs Personal Development Other
For each your 6 Future Vision Statements, identify 3-6 major goals for next 5 years
For each goal, use the formats below and on following pages to describe your goal
Use the E.P.E.G.S. formula to describe the compelling way, as if you have already
achieved it
Life areas: Health Relationships Career Financial Spirituality & Beliefs Personal Development Other
Life areas: Health Relationships Career Financial Spirituality & Beliefs Personal Development Other
Life areas: Health Relationships Career Financial Spirituality & Beliefs Personal Development Other
Life areas: Health Relationships Career Financial Spirituality & Beliefs Personal Development Other
Life areas: Health Relationships Career Financial Spirituality & Beliefs Personal Development Other
Life areas: Health Relationships Career Financial Spirituality & Beliefs Personal Development Other
So first of all, you must decide which areas of your life to focus on right now and which major
goals you want to move forward. As a general rule, you should focus on just 3 major goals at any
one time.
Most people tend to over-estimate what they can achieve in 3 months and underestimate what
they can achieve in the longer term. It is easy to create an unrealistic short-term goal plan
especially with the enthusiasm of first starting to use the goal planning system. Do make sure
that you have a reasonable chance of achieving your goals. Your goals should, of course,
challenge you, and each small success will motivate you to achieve more and better things.
Now choose the 2-3 focus goals you want to achieve in the next 2-3 months. Remember, your
focus goals will contribute to achieving one or more of your major goals. Each may be a step
towards the major goal or a milestone or support goal to be achieved before moving forward on
your ultimate goal. Once you have chosen your goals to focus on, write down each one using the
E.P.E.G.S. formula (page 20) and the format below. Write each one on piece of pocket-sized
card so that you can carry them around and remind yourself.
Once you have identified and stated your focus goals, write down all the tasks that must be done
to achieve that goal and start working on them!
Identify the areas of life and major goals that you want to progress in the next 2-3 months
Identify the 2-3 focus goals that you want to achieve towards that major goal (or a
supporting goal) that you will focus on for the next 3 months
For each focus goal, use the format on following pages to describe your goal. Remember
to use the E.P.E.G.S. formula to describe them in a compelling way
Write the focus goal statements on pocket-sized card so that you can carry them around
with you for reference and as a constant reminder
Life areas: Health Relationships Career Financial Spiritual Personal Development Other
By using the goal planner in this step of the Mind Tools Design Your Life system, you will not
only have a comprehensive goal plan, but also you will start to program your mind to focus on
achieving these goals. Use the format on pages 31 onwards to break down your major goals.
The goal planner is a must for complex goals that need a great deal of planning. Even for less
challenging goals, the goal planner is a great checklist to ensure you have everything you need
for success. Once you have mastered detailed goal planning for your major goals, you will find it
is a useful tool for planning any level of major goal, milestone and support goal or even your
focus goals.
The goal-planner format provided on page 31 onwards asks a series of questions to help you
plan your goals to the next level of detail.
Goal statement
What is your goal exactly? Define your goal statement in a compelling way by using the
E.P.E.G.S. formula (page 20)
End State
Describe your end state What will you see, hear and feel when you have achieved your
goal?
Required Resources
What specific or additional resources do you require to achieve this goal?
Model of Excellence
Who do you need to be and how do you need to act to achieve this goal?
Ecology Checklist
What would, and wouldnt, happen if you did or didnt achieve the goal?
First Steps
What first steps are needed? It is important to define these to create the sense of
momentum and a sense that the goal, however daunting or challenging, is in fact
achievable.
Power Statements
What statements will motivate you? Stated in the positive, personal and present tense as
though they were already true statements. For example, if you had a goal to lose weight
then one of your power statements might look be: I feel great about myself at my ideal
bodyweight of XXkg.
My Commitment
The final section of the goal planner is the commitment section for you to sign to affirm
your commitment to the goal. Writing down your goal in detail and signing your
commitment is a powerful way to ensure success.
For each of your major goal, copy or print out the 5 goal-planner pages that follow
Use the goal planner format and questions to plan each of your goals in details
Chunk down complex goals into a series of milestone and support goals to make them
more believable and achievable
Use the techniques of the E.P.E.G.S. formula and positive, personal and present tense
statements to create compelling goal plans
Start work immediately on some of the first actions to give momentum to your plans
Finally, sign each goal plan to affirm your commitment to achieving the goal.
(O)........
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(S)..
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(O)........
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(S)..
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(O)........
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(S)..
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What values will be important to keep you aligned with this goal?
...
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Chunking and 1)
Milestone Goals
5)...
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Action List
Brainstorm all of the action
steps you could take to
achieve this goal.
Make a list of everything you
can think of. The order is not
important at this stage.
Check off each item when
completed.
My Commitment By signing off on this goal, I am agreeing to fully commit myself to see this
goal through to its successful completion. This commitment is a binding
The key to achieving more contract I make willingly with myself.
of your goals is to develop a
total sense of commitment.
Congratulations on completing the Design Your Life program and learning the life
design system that will help you achieve more success and more of your dreams!
Wed love to hear how youve enjoyed the program and any other feedback you have.
We constantly strive to improve our publications and value your input greatly. Wed
especially love to hear your SUCCESS STORIES using the Design Your Life system!
Just email us at designyourlife@mindtools.com .
Please visit us again at the Mind Tools website at www.mindtools.com . Here youll find a
comprehensive source of articles and information on career development and personal
effectiveness techniques.
Mind Tools also provides a range of high quality products and services in related areas.
To find out more, please visit the Mind Tools store at:
https://www.mindtools.com/rpages/store.htm
Interested in more information on life design and other areas of personal and career
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Rod Moore
Rachel Manktelow