A Personal Plan for Sustainability

In building a sustainably lifestyle, how you define success and choose to get there can vary.

Traditional strategic planning starts with a vision: a statement about what you want to become or how you want to behave based on defined values. The process continues with setting goals, building action plans, defining metrics, and evaluating progress.

While more familiar and comfortable for some, this may seem like a lengthy and cumbersome process for individuals looking to improve their daily lives. It doesn’t have to be. Personal planning doesn’t have to be a high level, all inclusive, abstract process.

Our personal consulting experience has taught us that people have a natural tendency to gravitate towards personal passions. So why not start there? A personal vision can be to follow sustainability concepts that are of interest and provide joy when practiced.

Start by setting personal goals that have impact and are easily achievable. Set yourself up to succeed. Feelings of joy from achievement will provide reinforcement and a stepping stone to something new.

Build action plans that support success. For example: If the recycling center is 10 miles out of your way, you may not want to consider a plan to go there every Wednesday at 5pm if timing and traffic may be bad. Chances are that you are going to feel pressured to get there and you aren’t going to feel good about it. Instead, you could build a plan to reduce the amount of recyclables you consume: bring your own bags to the stores, minimize junk mail, limit your aluminum and plastic beverage bottles and also plan a trip to the recycling center when it really fits into your schedule.

Finally, evaluate your success by what makes you feel good. Sustainability is about providing for a continued state into the future. What better way to raise your eco awareness and ensure success than to follow the sustainability concepts that bring you joy.

As a sustainability consultant for life, Taiga Company offers tools and processes that are designed for the individual as well as for business. Our personal sustainability programs can help you build a personal strategic plan for a more sustainable lifestyle.