Here is what you do:

Week 1: Practice looking in eyes of strangers and smile. Do not look away from people.

Week 2: Say hi to a minimum of 7 people you do not know.

Week 3: Arrange a meeting with 2 people you do not know very well.

Week 4: Organize a meeting or a night out with a group of people you do not regularly spend time with.

Within a month, I guarantee you will become more comfortable around strangers if you follow this schedule. Work on a different aspect every month and your social skills will dramatically improve.

The key to overcoming shyness is setting well-defined goals and persisting. No one ever said overcoming shyness was easy. What you need to do is regard it as an important aspect of your life and take it as seriously as you take your career, family and friends. Concentrate and persist and you will overcome your shyness.

3. Charge into Action

Welcome to battlefield! You’ve assessed your goals and created battle plan. Now it is time to charge and get going. Often, goals are set with best of intentions only to fail because they never get started. Inaction is an enemy of success. It will even seek to destroy work that has already occurred.

In words of Oliver Wendell Holmes, “Finding great things in this world are not where we are standing, but is in what direction we are moving: to reach port of heaven, we must sail sometimes with wind and sometimes against it, but we must sail, and not drift, nor lie at anchor.”

First, in either your personal or professional life, be courageous. Do not limit yourself or settle for being average. You were not created for ordinary, but for extraordinary. Believe in yourself and your ability to succeed. In order to be above average, you must think and act above average. If you dream and accept mediocrity, you will always fall short of your true potential. Dream great things and move into action to accomplish them.

There are moments when you are offered opportunities to accomplish great things only to accomplish little because you fail to act upon opportunity. Create your own success, seek greatness. Abraham Lincoln once said, “Beware of rashness, but with energy and sleepless vigilance, go forward and give us victory.”

Next, be committed. Earlier you took time to write down your goals and dreams. This was an exercise of commitment. Once you move into action, this exercise will need to expand. Keep your goals nearby, so as to never lose focus. Each day recite your dreams aloud. Move into action each day toward your dreams. Strive to keep your goals in forefront of your mind.

Finally, you must also be critical. As you encounter opportunities, ask yourself how this will affect your goals. Will this lead you to success or move you farther from your goals? If they point towards success, accept their challenge. If they don’t, let them pass. Even meeting new people is an action exercise. Ask yourself, “Will this person support, encourage or push me to new heights or will they pull me away or hinder me from achieving my goals?” Charging into action is probably most difficult step in this process. Be courageous, stay committed and be critical. When you have mastered these skills, hold on tight and prepare yourself for a wonderful ride!

4. Celebrate Victories both Large & Small

Celebration is final key. Rewarding yourself gives you an opportunity to reflect upon your achievements and to celebrate hard work required by journey. Celebration is an important part in goal process. It allows you to enjoy fruits of your efforts and to express joy and fellowship with those who helped in your accomplishments. It provides a forum to share with others self-satisfaction you have received from your success.

A common misconception is that celebration comes at end of journey. Says who? I challenge you to celebrate early and often. Recognize that some of your goals can be accomplished in a short time, while others might take years to accomplish. With long-term goals, end is distant and thus you might become discouraged or bored with goal. It’s very easy to get caught-up in end-result and forget all of small things you accomplished that were essential to mission. Take time each day to celebrate your accomplishments.

I have heard my clients say, “I have not or cannot accomplish anything.” Nothing could be farther from truth! The truth is that these persons have not seen end goal, but have accomplished many things that have led them toward their goal. Certainly you need to stay focused on ultimate goal, but don’t forget to celebrate critical accomplishments along way.

Try this great exercise: Create a celebration team and a weekly celebration list. This will help you more clearly recognize your progress and reasons to celebrate. I am confident that you can find at least one thing each week to celebrate. Once you view list, set aside some time to celebrate. You can celebrate alone or with friends. Develop an environment that allows for self and group celebration. Ask others if they would be on your celebration team, to support you and celebrate with you. Have fun with it!

In end, it’s accomplishment of goals and achievement of dreams that will bring great joy to your life. Stay committed and focused, develop a plan, move into action and celebrate your success. With this powerful structure in place, you will amaze yourself and those around you with all that you accomplish. You can do it!

Copyright Anthony Mullins

Elite Coaching Alliance 2005

Anthony Mullins is the President and Life Coach for The Elite Coaching Alliance. He specializes in leadership, marriage, relationship and family,christian based coaching. He is the author of the upcoming e-book "Finding Fulfillment in and Unfulfilling World". He can be reached by e-mail: anthony@elitecoachingalliance.com or by phone at 770.587.3545. Visit our new website http://www.elitecoachingalliance.com