It’s September 1st, and while most people are taking the day off, I want to take the opportunity to make and set some goals, accomplish them and get ready for the rest of the year. Instead of saying, “Man, I can’t believe it’s already October”, I want to say, “Yeah, it’s October. Look how much we did in September!”

(warning: this post walks the line of crazy inspirational speaker, and i’m okay with that. I need to inspire myself to make things happen and hopefully you’ll be inspired too.)

The Inspiration:

Do you ever find yourself talking about all the things you really want to do? Even if you love your job (which I do), you still might have other fun ideas floating around in your head. Or, do you ever just talk about ways to make your current life and current job/work/projects even better? I know I do. I’m always trying to do what I can to make all my work projects the best they can be.

(Read my thoughts on living the best life possible here.)

Most of my peers are entrepreneurs and have so many awesome ideas and creative concepts that they are always wanting to start.

I know that almost every time I’m out with friends one of them brings up a cool project they’d like to be working on or start. We get in conversations about how to make our current jobs better, always trying to come up with that next BIG IDEA to take our positions to the next level. But, so many incredible ideas go wasted because we don’t actually write them down and make them a priority.

After Bob and I went out the other night and had one of those familiar conversations, I said stop. Let’s stop just talking about all these cool things we want to do and let’s actually do them. 

So that night we made a list of all the things we want to accomplish in September. And you know what? There was something so liberating about writing them down and seeing them all in front of us. Instead of these impossible to reach things, they seemed totally doable (albeit still a lot of work) when written out.

Introducing September Shape-Up:

This month, Bob and I are going to create our list, set goals, work hard, and accomplish them. I’m calling it a “shape-up” because this ‘talking not doing’ trend has been a cycle that I want to break. Some might call it a bucket list, but I want to think of it as a lifestyle overhaul. (Read about my thoughts on work/life balance here.)

Every shape-up is going to look different, but I’m going to add my list and the steps I’m taking to fully embark on this new way of life.

Enough of feeling like we didn’t do enough. Enough of thinking about our long, imaginary to-do list and never feeling like we’ll complete it. I want to set goals and cross them off. I want to see the literal fruits of my labor and enjoy the successes.

This list should help prioritize your life for what you really want, be it a vacation, a raise, a house, a baby, etc.

When you’re working so hard and all your concentration goes to that one thing, it’s hard to take a step back and see what all you’ve accomplished. The list should help with realizing what you’ve actually completed.

Want to join us? Yay! Here’s what you should do today:

Make your list:

Your list can include things you want to accomplish at work, adventures outside of work, bucket list items, or even simple every day things you want to do around your house. Your list can be whatever it is that keeps burning a fire in your soul.

Take a few hours to really think about what you want in life and what you can start doing now that will help you get there. Here are a few tips and things to think about when creating your list:

• Allow yourself to dream. Think about what you’d want in your wildest dreams. What does your life look like and what are you doing? Like I said before, I think these applies to people who love their current life just as much as those who are less happy with their current situation. We can always do better and acheive more.
• Prioritize. Once you’ve written your list (which could look more like a jumble of words and phrases), add numbers to each item or group them in sets to give them a priority in your life.
• Don’t judge yourself. Try to create your list without questioning if or how you’d actually do them right now. This step is all about uncovering what you really want to do.
• They don’t all have to be life changing. Don’t be shy about adding smaller or easy to accomplish things. Learning a new recipe might make your list or separating your receipts into proper bins- these are smaller goals than, say, launching an App, but no less important.
• There is no set amount. You don’t have to worry about adding 10 items or 1oo items. Bob’s list is only 5 things. He boiled his down to the absolute musts for him while my list is more like 18 things. And remember- this list should include things you can do and start to do this month.

Every list is going to look different. I’m going to share my own list (in a separate blog post) and some of those things might apply to you.

Besides creating your own list, I have a few ideas to increase inspiration and keep the creative energy burning inside. Some might sound a little weird, but I really believe in this. I’ll share these throughout September Shape-Up.

Define Success:

The other night Bob said, “What will make you feel really successful? Is it an award, a certain amount of money? – What tangible thing has to happen to feel success and pride?” It’s a question that all entrepreneurs need to ask and answer for themselves.

After you make your list, define what success will look like for you. Does it mean completing every item on your list? Does it mean making positive steps towards them? Figure it out and write it down too.

So, are you in?

Let us know if you’re joining the September Shape-Up. Comment below, send us a tweet or comment on our Facebook wall. We can do this!