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Quote:
Originally Posted by fedex View Post
Sorry to bring up an old thread, but I'm in the middle of setting up OO for goals and Curt's explanation gave me some ideas, but also confusing me.

Could you explain more how you keep the snapshots of your goals? If I'm reading your post I get the feeling you have each month for each year in your 1 year goal document, ie:

1 Year Goals 2012
- April 2012 (as set in april 2011)
-- Goal X
-- Goal Y
- May 2012 (as set in may 2012)
-- Goal XX
-- Goal YY

Doesn't this mean you'll have to set new 1 year goals each month? How do you prioritize goals early in the year opposite to goals later that year?

Hopefully I misunderstand your post because I would really like to understand the snapshot concept you're using.
Mattias,

Finally saw your post. Sorry for being AWOL from the forums. Life has gotten in the way lately.

I keep one document for One and Five Year Goals and one document for monthly goals. The top-level items in my One and Five Year Goals document look like this:

Code:
- [-] Goals set August 2010
    - [-] June 2011 Specific Goals
        - [-] Sharpen the Saw
            - [ ] …
        - [ ] Support and nurture my relationship with Lisa
            - [ ] …
        - [ ] Help manage our household
            - [ ] …
        - [-] Take time to have fun
            - [ ] …
        - [-] Create useful systems and propagate knowledge of computing
            - [ ] …
        - [ ] Build and sustain relationships with friends and family
            - [ ] …
        - [ ] Serve others and build a sustainable society
            - [ ] …
    - [ ] June 2015 Overarching Goals
        - [ ] Sharpen the Saw
            - [ ] …
        - [ ] Support and nurture my relationship with Lisa
            - [ ] …
        - [ ] Take time to have fun
            - [ ] …
        - [ ] Help manage our household
            - [ ] …
        - [ ] Create useful systems and propagate knowledge of computing
            - [ ] …
        - [ ] Build and sustain relationships with friends and family
            - [ ] …
        - [ ] Serve others and build a sustainable society
            - [ ] …
- [-] Goals set July 2009
    - [ ] …
Each year I create a new item like the one above, setting new yearly goals and refining my five year goals. Two key ideas for me are to keep the number of goals relatively small and to treat the goals as guiding principles for decision making, not as "must do" items that simply impose guilt.

I keep my monthly goals in a separate outline. I set monthly goals based on lots of inputs, including reviewing my one and five year goals. The top-level items in my monthly goals outline look like this:

Code:
- [-] April 2011
    - [ ] Keep the Saw Sharp
        - [ ] Maintained normal sleep schedule
        - [ ] Trained for the Mini with dedication and enthusiasm
    - [ ] Support and nurture my relationship with Lisa
        - [ ] Talked regularly
        - [ ] Enjoyed visit
    - [ ] Help manage our household
        - [ ] Fixed hot tub faucet
        - [ ] Got signed lease for renting house
        - [ ] Corrected crawlspace mold/humidity
        - [ ] Found housing in Seattle
        - [ ] Listed stuff on Craigslist
    - [ ] Take time to have fun
        - [ ] Got RoseTime into the app store
        - [ ] Provided solid feedback on OO beta
    - [ ] Create useful systems and propagate knowledge of computing
        - [ ] Did not go to the office on Wednesdays!
        - [ ] Drafted SE and CS descriptions and differences, with the
              vision task force
        - [ ] Delivered 373 in a sustainable way
        - [ ] Delivered 220 in a sustainable way
    - [+] Build and sustain relationships with friends and family
    - [ ] Serve others and build a sustainable society
        - [ ] Sang in choir for Easter
- [-] March 2011
    - [ ] …
I keep that document open on my desktop, hoisted to the current month, to help with decision making.

Hope that helps.
__________________
Cheers,

Curt