WHEN we begin with the end in mind, we have a personal direction to guide our daily activities, without which we will accomplish little toward our own goals.
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Beginning with the end in mind is part of the process of personal leadership, taking control of our own lives.
The children in all the local public schools have formed a group called the Liverpool Plains Alliance.
The aim of this alliance is to support each other professionally "growing together and creating successful life-long leaders".
As you are no doubt aware from conversations you have had with your children around the dinner table, our school, along with the other six schools, have introduced Stephen Covey's "Seven Habits" in a school based program called "The Leader in Me".
We have incorporated these habits into everyday school life and we also address a habit in our focus weeks program.
Next week it's the second habit, "begin with the end in mind".
Begin with the end in mind means to begin each day, task, or project with a clear vision of your desired direction and destination, and then continue by flexing your proactive muscles to make things happen.
One of the best ways to incorporate habit two into your life is to develop a personal mission statement.
The children in the senior classes will be writing their statements for the front page of their student portfolios, which will be sent home at the end of next week.
Our students have been asked to look at what they want to be, and what steps can be taken to get there.
It may be a little rocky at times so we may need to adjust our progress.
We may have a setback so we have to pick ourselves up, look at where we went wrong and make the changes so we can continue on towards our goal.
It's not something just for our children.
Goals and targets are things we can set as well.
What do you want to be when you grow up?
That question may appear a little trite, but think about it for a moment.
Are you, right now, who you want to be, what you dreamed you'd be, doing what you always wanted to do? Be honest.
Sometimes people find themselves achieving victories that are empty; successes that have come at the expense of things that were far more valuable to them.
If your ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step you take gets you to the wrong place faster.
The staff were faced with these questions when we did the Covey training on the last two days of 2015 and we too found it a little confronting, but it's allowed us to look at ourselves and ensure that we are focussed on our goal and ready to take on the challenges to reach it.
If you are interested in learning more about Stephen Covey's "Seven Habits" please contact the school.
