Kevin W. McCarthy

The Professor of On-Purpose

life plan

How Good Is Your Life Plan?

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Be honest with yourself … do you know how to make a life plan?

Do you even have a plan?

Is it a written life plan?

My experience with clients and readers of The On-Purpose Person tells me very few people have any sort of a plan in place for their lives, especially a written plan. Sure, we have ideas and dreams that we ponder now and then, but to take it to the step of writing out a plan is very rare.

The process in The On-Purpose Person is a format and guide for creating a life plan that is very meaningful and gives you a strategic advantage in life.

Imagine a contractor attempting to build a house without blueprints. It makes no sense, yet many of us are building lives without the benefit of a plan.

Do you want a life plan?

Chances are you don’t know how to structure your life and process the information, so you haven’t created one. Here’s where one of our On-Purpose Personal Leadership Coaches might serve you well.

I have access to the all-time, world’s best planner. Drop me a line, briefly share your interest and the help you want. Perhaps you’ll want to meet him?

Be On-Purpose!
Kevin

The On-Purpose Person and Making Life Plans:

“Without a doubt this is the best guide I have seen for creating a meaningful life and plan.”
– Dr. Malcolm E. Hawley, DDS

“The On-Purpose Person is a valuable addition to an important and growing literature on effective time management and leadership. McCarthy brings to life and makes operational powerful ideas that will help all of us make a difference.”
– John W. Rosenblum, PhD, Dean Emeritus, The Darden School

“The best tool I’ve seen for turning good intentions into positive actions. Highly recommended for anybody, but especially for those who need a way to organize unstructured time—like clergy!”
– The Right Reverend William Frey,
Dean, Trinity Episcopal School for Ministry, retired

“What’s happened to the American Dream? Despite working harder, too many people lack fulfillment, happiness, and emotional security. The On-Purpose Person gets us back on track, organized around what really matters, and equipped with a purpose and plan for thriving in a rapidly changing world.”
– Dr. Wayne Scott Andersen, D.O.
Author, Dr. A’s The Habits of Health

“Reading The On-Purpose Person changed my life. The concepts and practical applications detailed in this wonderfully engaging book empowered me to re-focus my personal and professional goals to achieve true inner peace.”
– Gordie Allen
CEO & Professional Sales Trainer, Leads-Plus, Inc.

Will You Be a Boom or Bust?

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The following text of this On-Purpose Business Minute is dedicated to Baby Boomers, but the video is applicable to anyone in, entering, or exiting the workforce.

Think of a Baby Boomer you know—he or she may be your parents or you.

Three big trends are converging to create an economic swirl of circumstances that will define their next twenty to thirty years.

  1. Baby Boomers are now hitting retirement age in record numbers.
  2. The world economy is unstable and so are many retirement and pension plans.
  3. Baby Boomers are retiring from jobs, but not from life, or the desire (need!) to keep earning.

Many Boomers will find themselves with

  • an empty nest
  • plenty of time on their hands
  • a desire to make a difference
  • a smaller retirement nest egg or pension than anticipated

Rather than heading for assisted living, they’ll be doing a “working retirement”—some by choice and others by necessity.

So what’s your plan for retirement?

Many of your friends may be saying, “I want to retire to Florida or Arizona to play golf, eat out, see movies, read books, relax, and visit my grandchildren.” Some of you may be thinking, “I’m interested in beginning my own business.” I hope so!

Perry James is a character appearing in both The On-Purpose Person and The On-Purpose Business Person. He’s a retired gentleman who provides mentoring and consulting services to a variety of small- and medium-sized business owners.

Perry is based on a dear friend and mentor of mine—Perry Nies, an MIT graduate with a Harvard Business School MBA, and retired business executive and owner. When I was in my early thirties Perry engineered me through some true business challenges. To this day we remain friends and are connected through church. At over 90 years of age Perry is an engaged and vital contributor who still consults and is involved in ministries. He’s also a role model for many Boomers of how to have an On-Purpose retirement.

 

The Baby Boom began in 1945. Today, the wave of Baby Boomers is being presented with a remarkable opportunity to dream and plan their “retirement.” Many will become “retired professionally” but seek to keep an active hand and mind in the affairs of business and life. I know for a fact that the Millennial and Gen X Generations need their wisdom, experience, and skills. I’m at the tail end of the Baby Boom and I value their counsel.

What if the most on-purpose years of your career are just around the corner … and you never make the turn because you hadn’t planned on it?

This blog post is simply my way of putting the challenge before the retiring Baby Boomers—keep Booming (and blooming).

  • Plan new businesses
  • Outline books you’ve always wanted to write
  • Offer your talent
  • Be a mentor
  • Stay connected
  • Think ahead
  • Develop your business plan now not later

Once they’re out of the flow of activity, most never return because they’ve fallen behind and the effort to get back up to speed is overwhelming.

Avoid getting caught short at retirement without a life and work plan. Without one, you’re likely to become a Baby Buster instead of a Baby Boomer.

To Do: Begin writing what your future could be. Download the Discovery Guide to help you get started.

How Do I Simplify My Life?

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Have you reached the point where you’ve said, “Something has to change! I can’t go on living like this!”? You want to simplify your life, but then you mindlessly keep filling your schedule and piling up the work at home and on the job.

Life in the fast lane requires a vehicle designed to go fast. To do otherwise is simply gambling with one’s life. You may feel blessed with the desire to run in the fast lane. But you’ve also been blessed with the wisdom to know that level of activity can’t be sustained long-term without negative consequences.

No research studies here to reference, but my gut tells me many of us are looking to simplify life with the hopes that decluttering will offer stress relief, healthier living, and a more peaceful existence. We’re running so hard and so fast, that if we ease off the accelerator of our lives for a minute, we’re apt to discover we’re lost and without direction.

We begin asking basic and solid life questions such as:

  • “What does it really mean to be me?”
  • “How do I find direction in my life?”
  • “Who am I really?”
  • “How do I simplify my life?”

The desire to simplify our lives and the act of actually doing it are easily postponed. When a car needs maintenance, a dashboard light flashes on and we take it to the repair shop or dealer. When we need maintenance, we experience headaches, stress, grumpiness, and worse. Hypertension, adrenal fatigue, weight gain, and other risky decisions keep us flying down the highway of life in ill-maintained bodies. What do we do? We pop a pill to kill the pain or turn off the indicator.

Are you at risk of running yourself into the ground at a frenzied, unhealthy pace?

“Clutter equals postponed decisions.” That’s what my friend Barbara Hemphill, author of the Taming The Paper Tiger series and professional organizer extraordinaire, says about all the stuff surrounding us. In essence, Barbara’s telling us that physical clutter is a reflection of a life of indecision.

In the On-Purpose Approach, clutter is speedily and readily managed with the Want List and Tournament process. Download the free preview to the Discovery Guide. Use this simple process to sort and set priorities. In just about 10 minutes, your brain will be better organized, your spirit more settled, and you’ll move forward more productively. Use this tool every day with your Two Do lists or anytime you’ve got a project and can’t figure out where to start.

Let me offer a different perspective for you.

What if the demands, stresses, and strains of our modern society are actually blessings that refine and sharpen us to be more of who we are and are called to be? That means you are, in fact, an on-purpose person in creation. Perhaps this current crisis is really a conspiracy of compassion designed to bring you to your knees … for prayer and prayer alone. If so, count it all joy that you have hit your low point and can only look upward.

BONUS Video: Watch Michael W. Smith’s song Open the Eyes of My Heart. This worship song has long been a favorite of mine. If you’re in a dark place today or simply need to be uplifted, let the words of this song sink deep into your spirit.

Time Management: Myth or Missing Link

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Too much to do and not enough time to get it all done.  For most of us that means it
is time to turn to time management.  Courses and seminars in time
management, software packages, PDAs like the Palm, and good old
fashioned daily planners like a DayTImer, Franklin Covey Planner, or Day
Runner, all hold great promise to help you get your life on track.  And
they do!  Kinda.  Mostly.

Time management is a smokescreen masking an underlying
problem.  Sure time management systems allow you to manage events, set priorities, plan your day, and schedule your appointments.  But are you making progress in life or are you just moving around meetings and activities?  Have you just become more efficient at being ineffective?

Solve the underlying challenge of why you need time
management and your time management problems narrow significantly.  In the end, it isn’t the tools and technology or time management that make a difference.  It is you!

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