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The less clear you are about what you want to do, the less effective your plan will be. Try to specifically define what you want to achieve as early as possible — preferably before starting your project. Example: You are trying to complete your master’s thesis — basically a very long essay — which needs to be about 40,000 words. It will include an introduction, a literature review (in which you critically discuss other research that informs yours, and discuss your methodology), several chapters in which you put your ideas into practice using concrete examples, and a conclusion. You have 1 year to write it. Identify your end goal, then list everything you need to do to accomplish it. Depending on your goal, you may even consider different ways to reach your goal. After you know what you need to accomplish, break this down into actionable steps to help you create a more realistic plan.  Keep in mind that your plan may change as you work toward your goal, so stay flexible. Make sure that your goals are S.M.A.R.T. to ensure that your plan is effective: Specific - Be clear about what you want to achieve. Measurable - You can break down the goal into measurable checkpoints. Attainable - You are capable of completing the steps necessary to reach the goal. Relevant - The goal makes sense for your life and purpose. Timely - You have the time to work toward your goal and are progressing on schedule. Having a specific goal is just the beginning: you need to be specific and realistic in every aspect of your project — for example, by stating specific and achievable schedules, milestones, and final outcomes.  Being specific and realistic while planning a long project is all about pro-actively reducing stress that can accompany poorly planned projects such as missed deadlines and exhausting long hours. Example: To finish your thesis on time, you need to write roughly 5,000 words per month, which will give you a couple of months at the end of your timeline to polish your ideas. Being realistic means not placing the expectation on yourself to write more than 5,000 words each month. If you’re working as a teaching assistant for three of those months, you’ll need to consider that you may not be able to complete 15,000 words in that time, and you’ll need to spread that amount out over your other months. Milestones mark significant stages along the road to achieving your end goal. Create milestones easily by starting at the end (the accomplishment of the goal) and working your way backwards to your present day and circumstances.  Having milestones can help you — and if applicable, your team — stay motivated by breaking the work into smaller chunks and tangible goals so that you don’t need to wait until the project is completely finished to feel as though you’ve accomplished something. Don’t leave too much time or too little time between milestones — spacing them two weeks apart has been found to be effective.  Example: When writing your thesis, resist the urge to set milestones based on chapter completions, as this could be a matter of months. Instead, set smaller milestones — perhaps based on word counts — every two weeks, and reward yourself when you hit them. Some tasks or milestones may seem more daunting to achieve than others.  If you’re feeling overwhelmed by a large task, you can help ease your anxiety and make it feel more doable by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable chunks. Example: The lit review is often the most difficult chapter to write, as it forms the foundation of your thesis. In order to complete your lit review, you need to do a significant amount of research and analysis before you can even begin writing. You can break it into three smaller chunks: research, analysis, and writing. You can break it down even smaller by choosing specific articles and books that you need to read, and setting deadlines for analyzing them and writing about them. Make a list of tasks that you need to complete in order to hit your milestones. A list on its own will not be effective — you must write this list into a timeline associated with specific, realistic actions. Example: By breaking your lit review into smaller chunks, you’ll know exactly what you need to get done, and can figure out a realistic timeframe for those tasks. Perhaps every one to two days you will have to read, analyze, and write about one key reading. Without specific time frames and deadlines, work will definitely expand to fill the time allotted, and some tasks may never get completed.  No matter what action items you choose for which phase of your action plan, it is essential that a time frame be attached to absolutely everything. Example: If you know that it takes you roughly 1 hour to read 2,000 words, and you’ll be reading a 10,000-word article, you need to give yourself at least 5 hours to complete that article. You’ll need to also account for at least 2 meals during that time, as well as short breaks every 1 to 2 hours for when your brain is feeling tired. In addition, you’ll want to add at least an hour onto your final number just to account for any possible unanticipated interruptions. Once you’ve listed your action items and set a specific timeline, the next step is to create some type of visual representation of your plan. You might use a flow chart, a Gantt chart, a spreadsheet, or some other type of business tool to accomplish this. Keep this visual representation in an easily accessible place — even on a wall in your office or study room, if possible. Marking things off as you go will not only feel satisfying, it will help you keep on track lest you forget what you’ve already done. This is particularly important if you’re working with other people. If you’re working with other people, you might consider using a shared online document so that everyone can check in no matter where they are. As you work through your action plan, keep notes of everything. You may find it helpful to have a binder with different tabs in it to section off different aspects of your planning process. Some examples of sections:  Ideas/Miscellaneous notes Daily Schedules Monthly Schedules Milestones Research Follow-up Individuals involved/Contacts Once your plan is established and shared with the team (if applicable), and your milestones are scheduled, the next step is simple: take daily actions to achieve your goal. Although you want to stay persistent, you should also be flexible. It's likely that unexpected events will come up that require you to shift your schedule or plan. 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.
Know what you want to do. Work backwards from your end goal. Be specific and realistic in your planning. Set measurable milestones. Break large tasks into smaller, more manageable chunks. Make scheduled lists. Put timelines on everything. Create a visual representation. Mark things off as you go. Keep a record of everything. Don’t stop until you’ve reached your final goal. Change the date if you must, but never give up on your goal.