Do you realize what today is? Yes, it is October 1st, but do you know what that means? Today is the first day of the 4th Quarter! And those who have been following me for years know that means it is time to stage a late rally – a 4th Quarter Comeback.
Everyone knows that there is nothing more exciting and satisfying than watching your team rally late in the game to come from behind and win. Over the years, that has become a bit of a personal thing for me as well. I have written about it before, but I will give a quick summation here.
As do many of you, I begin each year with some hopes, some expectations, some dreams, and even some resolutions. Some of them find their way into the dumpster of reality and bad habits early in January. Others languish deeper into the year, where they are all but vague memories by the time summer ends. Rarely does a resolution have any real legs left by Christmas.
So often we can just stagger through a year and barely maintain the status quo. As my buddy Bono calls it, we find ourselves, “Running to Stand Still.”
I hate looking back and feeling like a year was wasted. The idea of lost time and opportunity bugs me. Failed resolutions and missed accomplishment bugs me. That irritation was the genesis of the idea of a personal 4th Quarter Comeback.
It is a time when I dust off my hopes and goals for the year, and give a final push to end the year strong. The benefits are that I can look back at 2015 and feel like I got some things done, and I can move into the holiday season, and the new year, with a sense of momentum and accomplishment.
Hence, the 4th Quarter Comeback. It might not work for you, but it works for me.
One of the great advantages to a renewal that begins in early October is that it aligns with General Conference. Having a weekend to listen to the Lord’s servants can not only be a great motivator and call to action, but it can also help me pause to reassess my priorities and goals. Are the things I am pushing to accomplish by the end of the year the things that God wants me to focus on? If not, I can redirect my efforts and finish out the year headed in the right direction with newfound energy and motivation. If they are, I can move forward with the renewed energy that comes with spiritual validation.
I am aware that this an oddly “Springtime” kind of mentality. Perhaps living in the desert has something to do with it. We are just getting to the point where the oppressive heat of the summer is beginning to wane. Everyone is seeding their winter lawns and we are surrounded by new growth. It feels like a second springtime.
So, there you go. That is my pitch for a 4th Quarter Comeback. Personally, I have a few very specific goals that I want to accomplish in the next 90 days, and they are going to be tough. However, I think I can do just about anything for 90 days, ESPECIALLY if what I am doing is the right thing to be doing.
There is a very satisfying feeling in ringing in the New Year, knowing that you totally owned the year that just finished up.
I invite you to jump in and stage your own late rally. Here’s what you need to do:
1) Watch all of Conference this weekend.
2) Figure out what you NEED to accomplish before the year is out.
3) Make sure the Lord is onboard with your plans.
4) Write it down!
5) Tell someone that is important to you what you plan to do. (Date night, anyone?)
6) Get it done.
7) On New Years Eve, when everyone is talking about resolutions that we all know will never be kept, smile smugly and raise a glass of Martinelli’s to yourself, for a job well done.
(OK, #7 is optional.)
PS: I will be posting Conference updates after each session. I apologize in advance.
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This is great, thanks!
Reevaluating, prioritizing, making a list and then doing it…or at least giving it my best shot. Thanks for the reminder and advice. 2015 has been another crazy busy year, some good goals achieved but not necessarily the Best and most important ones. Your post is a reminder that I still have time to achieve some Best ones. Thanks MMM!
There are so many documents in my Google Drive titles “Goals” (or having the word “Goals” in them). I realized this when I began to write another document with the same title after you inspired me to do so. I will not let this discourage me, though! This document will be the one!
Objectives, targets, plans, intentions, ambitions, aspirations, marks, etc. (Just thought some thesaurus help was in order.)
This is awesome! I just read the 1st Pres. Message from the October Ensign and this is totally in line with that. I had been thinking last Friday that I needed to get some things in line to make the end of the year more successful than the other parts… Two or three witnesses…
I had not made that connection – thanks! Good company to keep.
This is a great article because it teaches you not to follow the counsel of Bronco Mendenhall and expect to win close games in the 4th quarter with Hail Marys.
I was taught pretty early on in my career to break down 90-day plans with big, hairy goals into 30-day, 60-day and 90-day chunks. For each month, I list what needs to be done, specifically, within each month: 1-3 priorities with measurable goals, weekly milestone check for progress and the expected outputs by the end of each month. And I knock out the low-hanging fruit (goals I’m closest to achieving) in the first 30 days to build momentum quickly.