Here are the different steps required to build your own action plan for your learning project:

Step 1. List your SMART goals in detail

A goal should be ​Sp​ecific,​ ​M​easurable​, A​ ​tainable​, ​Re levant,​ and ​T​imely​ (i.e.,

SMART). For each goal:

  1. a) Be SPECIFIC
  2. b) Make the goal M​EASURABLE​ (in quality or quantity)

c) Design the goal to be A​TTAINABLE​ (unless you are an astronaut, you

probably aren’t going to the moon in 1 year)

  1. d) Create the goal to be R​ELEVANT​ to the skill you wish to learn (if you

    want to lose weight, then learning how to crochet will not cut it)

  2. e) Have a T​IMELY​ deadline (no more than 1 year)

Step 2. List the resources you found and plan to use

When you did your research in the “how” section of the metalearning, you found all the resources imaginable on the topic.

What do you actually plan to use and why? Add a rating next to the resource to indicate how impactful you think it will be to your learning.

Always think about the Pareto Principle here (80/20 rule). The idea is to find the 20% of the resources that will yield 80% of the results you’re looking for. That’s why it’s very important to understand your “why” from the metalearning phase.

Step 3. List the global actions you’ll need to take

What are the recurring actions you must take? For example: Play the Ukulele daily, go to the gym daily, shoot basketballs daily, etc.

Step 4. List the specific actions your going to take and

set deadlines

These are the actions that relate directly to your SMART goals. They can be measured and you can put a deadline on them. Specify the exact method you’re going to use to measure your progress on these actions. If you plan to use a resource for the action, note that as well.

Step 5. List the ways you plan to stay accountable

For each learning project, always figure out ways to keep yourself accountable. When you figure out the purpose behind it, it’s much easier. At the end of your learning period, what will you commit to doing? Or even better, what will you commit to doing while you’re learning it?