Are you aware that every hour spent in effective planning saves three to four in execution? Effective planning enables us to sort out those things that can be delegated to others.

Planning is a time for prioritizing too. I could be "busy" with many other things besides writing this e-letter. My desk needs straightening. However, there will be time for that after I've finished with my priority.

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Here are ten tips that are suggestions for planning out your year. 1. Remember to mark off your vacation time. 2. Choose goals that align with your values. 3. Say "no" when it's a should, a could or an ought'a. 4. Mark off time just for yourself. 5. Decide what you can delegate. 6. Prioritize everyday 7. Use 10 daily habits. (more about this later) 8. Time things you do so you know how long it really takes. 9. Remember, people first and results second. 10. Create a personal mission statement for yourself.

I saw that I had been listening to my "stinking thinking", which resulted in poor choices and an unbalanced life. In truth, I was only able to see this clearly when it was right in front of me in black and white. Because journaling has been such a rewarding tool for me, I strongly recommend it to my clients.

I am not alone in my respect for journaling process. The author, Sara Ban Breathnach, asks her readers to keep a gratitude journal. She says, "Write ten things every day that you are grateful for." In a fabulous book called, "Writing Mind Alive", authors Linda Trichter Metcalf, PH.D. and Tobin Simon, PH. D. encourage their readers to sit at a table with no distractions, play Baroque music, light a candle and write on unlined paper for twenty-five minutes whatever comes to mind. Weight Watchers also asks participants to journal.

Is it just a coincidence that these successful agents of change all use a journal? Is there a pattern?