BUILDING AN ENTERPRISE – 3

Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint officers over the land, to collect one-fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt in the seven plentiful years. – Genesis 41:34

REFERENCE
Genesis 41:33-41, & 46-57

In the last episode, we highlighted the advantages of planning; we also said if you fail to plan, you have already planned to fail. However, as you plan for the year, make sure that your plans have S.M.A.R.T. goals. This means your plans should be:

SPECIFIC – You must itemize exactly what you want to achieve. What you plan to do must be clear. Don’t just say: “I want to be rich,” how much is rich? Or “I want to improve myself.” How? Academically or spiritually? You must be detailed and clear about what you are working on. List out how you want to achieve these goals. Joseph was specific about the need to save surplus food for Egypt to survive the coming famine.

MEASURABLE – If you don’t know where you are going, how will you know when you get there? Let your plans be things you can check your progress in – How far? What remains? E.g., you can say “by March, I should have purchased the forms for school.” Joseph decided that 20% of all produce will be saved.

ACHIEVABLE – Set defined goals you can achieve; they should stretch you so you feel challenged. Let it follow step-by-step action plans you can take. You must possess the appropriate knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to achieve the goal. Joseph knew that in the time of surplus, it was easy to save up 20%, it was doable.

REALISTIC – Set a goal that you are both willing and able to work towards. Don’t say you will save N100,000 every month, when your salary is N150,000. A goal can be both high and realistic; you are the only one who can decide just how high your goal should be. It shouldn’t be too easy though, because a low goal produces very low motivation. Joseph knew that 20%, although was a push, but it is an amount that can motivate the people to prepare for days of famine.

TIME-BOUND – Link your goals to a timeframe. That will create a practical sense of urgency or tension between your current reality and the goal. Without such tension, the goal is unlikely to produce a relevant outcome. Joseph made it clear that whatever was to be achieved was to be achieved within 7 years.

Joseph is a typical example of someone who by proper planning prevented a famine that could have devastated many lives. By planning (taking simple steps) for the future he was able to avert a complete disaster in Egypt and equally saved many nations. In the place of planning, many nations, organizations and lives have been built.

ADDITIONAL STUDY
Proverbs 15:22, Proverbs 20:18 & Habakkuk 2:2.

TO DO
Using the S.M.A.R.T model above, write out your plans/goals for the year, and ask the Holy Spirit to give you the grace to run with what you have written.