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HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
Preparation - a necessary step prior to taking action
For the past several
weeks, I’ve been
describing each of
the six stages of change as
presented in Changing for
Good, a 1994 book by James
Prochaska, John Norcross,
and Carlo DiClemente. The
six stages are precontempla
tion, contemplation, prepa
ration, action, maintenance,
and termination.
If you missed any of the
previous weeks’
contact me and I’ll provide
those columns. This week
we look at the preparation
stage. As any homeowner
who has tackled painting a
room knows, preparing the
surface is extremely impor
tant if you want a prop
er finished appearance.
Attempting to shortcut
the preparation stage will
almost always result in some
form of rework.
In their original research,
the authors did not sepa
rate preparation from the
contemplation stage. Their
experience, however, dic
tated a refinement. They
WR man wins $25,000 in lottery
Special to the Journal
Arthur Gordon is head
ed to the bank following a
top prize lottery win.
The Warner Robins
resident played Georgia
Jackpot, a Georgia Lottery
instant game recently, and
won $25,000. He bought
his lucky ticket at Express
Stop, 700 Russell Parkway
in Warner Robins.
“I s stopped at this gas
station and decided to buy
MILBY
From page $A
• Trouble finding words
• Struggling to complete
familiar actions
• Confusion about time,
place or people
• Misplacing familiar
objects
• Onset of new depression
or irritability
• Making bad decisions
• Personality changes
• Loss of interest in impor
tant responsibilities
• Seeing or hearing things
• Expressing beliefs
Next week we’ll deal with
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determined that the men
tal, emotional, and physical
progress that occurs in the
preparation stage is critical
for successful change.
In the contemplation
stage, you evaluate the cost
of making change against
the advantages of engaging
in new behaviors. Moving
into the preparation stage,
you zero in on the precise
actions that will move you
toward your desired future
state. You are increasingly
confident in your decision to
proceed. Your awareness of
the potential enhancements
in your life spurs your com
mitment.
The preparation stage is
a ticket,” said Gordon, 64.
“I scratched it right at the
store.”
After double-checking
the ticket, he exclaimed,
“I’m headed to the
bank!”
Since its first year,
the Georgia Lottery
Corporation has returned
more than $10.3 billion to
the state of Georgia for
education.
All Georgia Lottery
the symptoms and diagnosis
of dementia and resources
for help.
Some of the information
for today’s column was pro
vided by the Alzheimer’s
Foundation of America. To
learn more, visit www.alzfdn.
org.
Bill Milby is a retired 30
year veteran executive with
Blue Bird Corporation and
current Director of Visiting
Angels of Macon, a non-med
ical, living assistance service
for seniors. You can reach him
at wmilby@visitingangels.
com if you have questions or
comments about this column.
the mental creation that pre
cedes the physical creation.
To an outside observer, this
stage seems like a rehearsal
for action. You are anchor
ing your resolve, so that no
lingering ambivalence will
undermine your devotion to
improvement.
You are no longer gather
ing information about the
problem, as you did in the
contemplation stage. You’ve
now progressed to consid
ering options and planning
those particular approaches
that you believe will move
you forward with the great
est return on your invest
ment of time and energy.
Whether your plans are
simple or complex, they
must be specific. Further,
you must prepare yourself
to make your chosen actions
a high priority. If you merely
attempt to squeeze your new
activities in when you have
time, you are almost guar
anteed to relapse back into
previous habits.
Prepare your friends, fam
ily members, and colleagues
profits go to pay for spe
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More than 1.1 million
students have received
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attended the statewide,
voluntary prekindergar
ten program.
For more information,
visit www.galottery.fcom.
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"To an outside observer, this
stage seems like a rehearsal for
action."
(as well as your mentor or
coach) with guidance on
how they can support you.
They will appreciate a list
of “do’s and don’ts.” If you
provide clear expectations,
they are more likely to offer
encouragement and helpful
feedback.
A great motivator is a
clear vision of what your
life will be like when you
have achieved your desired
outcomes. Generate a listing
of the benefits you will enjoy
and keep that list in front
of you for ongoing inspira
tion. The structural tension
between your current reality
and your preferred future
state will stimulate your for
ward progress.
Healthy organizations
wanting further improve
ment must also pass through
WALKER
From page 4A
there were 100 there (I’m
not saying that one or two
could have died, but there
were 100 live wigglers when
we put that lid with the little
holes in it on the box).
I’m not so sure how to
count the crickets. I tried to
confirm that I had 100 when
I bought that many one time
and had great difficulty.
Crickets are hard to count.
They jump around and then
crawl up your arm and will
even get down in you pants if
you’re not careful
And, you’ll count the same
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2008 ♦
these six stages of change.
Sometimes, they get stuck
in the contemplation stage,
not certain where to put
their energies. They may be
at a plateau of some kind,
unaware of how to make
additional progress.
I usually suggest an organi
zational health assessment,
consisting of interviews with
a cross-section of the team
members. The process pro
vides ample new informa
tion for improvement oppor
tunities. Strengths that can
be enhanced are identified,
and limitations that have
become accepted as part of
the landscape are brought
into focus. With these new
insights, the team is able to
prepare for actions that will
yield an improved culture,
superb processes, and ulti-
one more than once if you
are not watching what you’re
doing. Still, I think the fish
bait business has lots of
potential. At least, it’s bet
ter than being a bankruptcy
lawyer.
Assessing Your
Leadership Skills
-SBS/person
jnsik
Jr
mately better results.
Please join me next week
when we explore “action,”
the most visible of the six
stages of change.
Dennis Hooper helps
leaders develop the capa
bilities of fvLture leaders.
Contact Dennis Hooper at
dhooper2@juno.com or 478-
988-0237. You may see his
work at www.buildingfu
tureleaders.com.
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F. Dennis Hooper
Certified
Leadership Development Coach
Building leaders and
organizations of excellence
(478) 988-0237
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