My visions in life 10 years from now!

How do I see myself 10 years from now? Am I worthy to be called as IT Professional? What are my strategies in getting there? That's are the questions that I'd really pondered myself...but before we go about to my visions in life, i will just first define what is IT and IT professional stands for?

What is an IT stand for?
Information technology (IT) is a broad term that includes all aspects of managing and processing information and related technologies. It is usually involved in the context of a business and is often used to automate manual tasks as well as improve efficiencies within an organization. By involving computer systems, IT has helped industry reach new markets and apply new services to customers and clients.


What is IT PROFESSIONAL?
Information technology professionals are responsible for designing, developing, supporting and managing computer hardware, computer software, and information networks, including the Internet. The real world applications of information technologies can be found everywhere. In fact, IT is likely already a part of your life in ways you may not even be aware. Examples of real world application of information technology includes computer software used to manage basic computer applications, computer generated animation in popular movies, networks and programs that allow you to purchase online, and satellites and systems that enable NASA to perform remote space exploration. There are a wide variety of career opportunities available for capable and experienced IT professionals. Select a category below to review detailed job descriptions, career reviews, to identify useful technology degrees, and to see employment forecasts in information technology.


Am I worthy to be called as an IT professional?
For now, I think I’m not yet worthy to be called as an IT Professional because I have more things to be learned, experienced and applied before I’m going to be like that. Being an IT professional is not easy to be nor difficult to work on it. There are lots of challenges and trials that I’m going to be encountered along the way before I really surpass it or I’ll be expert on that field.

Actually, I have so many dreams and goals in life for my self, for my family and for my country but still there’s no guarantee that I would really come up with that dreams of mine because I admit, I still have not enough confidence with myself for what I am now because I can’t still say that I am highly competitive on the field that I currently belonged in. I know that I have still lots of attitudes that I’m going to apply for this course, for being an IT professional, in short I am not worthy to be called as that. And for me, the main reason is, I think I haven’t yet get over on actually what I really want to be, which is being an accountant. It is really my dream since before and I admit that it is my frustration until now.


My visions in life before…
Before, when I was in 3rd year high school, which was the time that I had realized and apprehended myself on what I really wanted to be in the future, and that was being a CPA (Certified Public Accountant). We all knew that CPA is the one who maintains the business records of a person or organization and prepares forms and reports for tax or other financial purposes. So because of my elective before which is the Business Management, I had learned to love accounting because I like managing and computing especially on financial aspect and because I like math also which involves too in this subject though it only applied the basic mathematical operation.

In addition, what I really dreamed is to do what I really love to do and to be what I really wanted to be. And the things that I really love to do is to travel around in the Philippines and Europe with my family and maybe work there specially in UK (United Kingdom), to build a foundation in order to help other people who are needy specially those beggars on the streets, to have my own house and car, and lastly, to support my siblings or maybe relatives in their studies financially. But that would become true if I’m gonna be rich already and I can be a successful woman someday.


My visions in life 10 years from now…
Now that I am already on this industry, the IT industry, I am not really sure what would I become in the future. Sounds ridiculous isn’t it? But it’s true, because I think this is really not my field supposedly, it’s just that I have no other choice on what to take course in our school, USEP because there’s no accountancy there, which is my very first choice and the one and only course that I want to take, so I chose Information Technology instead since I thought of IT as a challenging one before and It really did so. Honestly, this is what I’ve certainly avoided before, to take a course that is not definitely my passion because I know that in the end or someday I’m not gonna be happy with it. But unfortunately, it certainly happened to me and I’m sacrificing and distressing it by now. But still, there’s a part of me that keeps telling me to hold on, given with a situation that I am here already for about 4 years now, so I have to go on with this and don’t ever give it up. I just wish that I can do it and be with it until the end.

Actually, it is so unexpected that I am still surviving this course until now coz we all know that this course is extremely difficult to survive nor easy to deal with especially if you are in USEP. In fact before, I didn’t really have any passion in computer and didn’t think myself to be engaged on it even just to play with it because it’s just like I don’t feel it. I’m just being challenged by so many people saying what all is about IT course that’s why I chose this course to know what’s behind it and because they said that it is more on math, so I’ve taken it as I love math too. But you know before when I was in a lower year, I’ve truly struggled with a lot of things in college particularly in decision making. Like every end of the semester, it always came into my mind that if there’s an opportunity or a chance for me to take the course I want which means that even if I have to shift or transfer to another school, I would really grab it though I know that I have to risk what I’ve sacrificed for years already just to be with the course I want, the Accountancy.
But then again, at this point in time with the situation that I am in right now, it is definitely different than before and it’s so hard for me now to let go what I have taken because I am in a higher year now specifically a 4th year college. I realized that if I am still here up to now yet surviving, therefore I think I should not give it up, I should build more patience, perseverance and determination and just have a little more sacrifices then I would be graduated soon. I know that God has a plan for me on this field, I mean I think someday there’s gonna be happened that I could think I would be so thankful and grateful because of this. He has his purpose, it’s His will for me to be with it and to be here then I should pursue it and likewise, go along with it. I don’t want to regret anymore, I want to believe that by this time I am right now with my decision. I should bear in mind that I have to continue what I have been willed or yearned before, proceed what I boast to proceed, go with what I have to go on with, believe what I ought to believe and achieve what I must achieve. Just Dream Big and Soar High then I would be successful in life.

Contrariwise, since that I am in the field of information technology already, there are also changes in what I have vision to be in my life 10 years from now. At this moment in time, I envision myself become a Graphic Designer, 3D Animator, CITP (Certified Information Technology Professional), a CEO of successful and productive company someday and I want to make a system or application that would benefit not only to the people in the Philippines but in the whole world too. Whew! I know it’s a very enormous vision of mine and kinda impossible to be, but then, I want to believe that I can be with it because it’s not bad to dream big and it’s free, we’re all free to dream high. By the way for you to know more about my aspirations, I will impart it below.

1.Graphic Designer
A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for published, printed or electronic media, such as brochures and advertising. They are also sometimes responsible for typesetting, illustration, user interfaces, and web design. A core responsibility of the designer's job is to present information in a way that is both accessible and memorable.

2.3D animator
An animator must do a lot of planning, or preproduction work, before an animation is recorded. Animators use computers for every part of the animation process, from creating a storyboard (a scene-by-scene illustration of the plot) to imitating camera movement. The animator will also do the process of developing the concept; storyboarding the concept (sketching the major events in a story with panel-like drawings, much like a comic strip); developing and recording a dialogue track, if used, and other sound elements; timing the dialogue or other sounds and recording this information on a time sheet (which shows, in seconds, the length of each bit of sound); and timing the action to fit the sound. In some cases, dialogue is recorded after animation is complete.

3.Certified Information Technology Professional (CITP)
Certified Information Technology Professional (CITP) is a Certified Public Accountant recognized for their technology expertise and unique ability to bridge the gap between business and technology. Unlike other certifications that recognize only a narrow scope of skills, the CITP credential recognizes technical expertise across a wide range of business-technology practice areas. The CITP credential encourages and recognizes excellence in the delivery of technology-related services by CPA professionals, and provides tools, training, and support to help CPAs expand their IT-related services and provide greater benefit to the business and academic communities they serve.

In related with the visions or goals in life, there is what we call Strategic planning, the ways to guide us on everything what we should do to achieve it. First, I will discuss what is strategic planning, then the strategies and steps for it, so on and so forth.


What is strategic planning?

A strategy is an overall approach and plan. So, strategic planning is the overall planning that facilitates the good management of a process. It provides you with the big picture of what you are doing and where you are going. Strategic planning gives you clarity about what you actually want to achieve and how to go about achieving it, rather than a plan of action for day to-day operations. A strategic planning process is not something that can happen in an ad hoc way. It requires careful planning to set it up so that the process is thorough and comprehensive.


Strategies to achieve my dreams…
There are three common characteristics of success.

The first is having a Purpose or goal: something we hope to attain or achieve at some point in the future. Yet in our everyday struggles to meet established work deadlines, maintain our life styles, and enjoy our families and friends, it is easy to lose sight of why we are in the profession of environmental health. As the saying goes, when you are really deep in alligators, it is hard to remember that the goal was to drain the swamp. But remember too, that when we focus only on obstacles, we've lost sight of our goals.

The second common characteristic of success is Commitment. We must be committed to our goals, but to what degree? Do we just hope that we will reach them, or are we going to do whatever it takes to attain them? How much time and energy are we willing to expend? The degree of our commitment has a direct impact upon our success.

Perseverance is the third characteristic shared by successful professionals. It is the ability to persist in an undertaking despite counter influences, opposition, or discouragement. I'm sure each of us has had at least one experience with counter influences, opposition, or discouragement. Did any of these obstacles stop us from reaching our goals? If we succumb to such obstacles can we feel successful? I doubt it. Just getting a restaurant manager to understand and accept why something needs to be changed should bring a feeling of success. Without perseverance, such understanding would not happen.

Purpose, commitment, and perseverance are three internal strengths we must develop. While they do not guarantee success, a successful professional possesses them.

There are also two external strengths that a successful professional usually possesses. The first is a mentor. The longer I am in the environmental health profession, the more I realize the importance of having a mentor. Think about your career to this point. Who helped you get where you are? For many of us, there is a mentor in our lives that helped guide and advise us along the way. It is often a friend and/or colleague who befriended us early in our careers. The further I progress in my career, the more I appreciate my mentors. If you are not a mentor to someone, consider it. It will not only return dividends to the individual, it will return dividends to the profession of environmental health. Besides, isn't this one of our responsibilities as professionals?

All of the above certainly help us become successful professionals. However, there is one more ingredient to success that probably overshadows all the rest: our families and friends. Without the sacrifice and commitment by our spouses, friends, and peers who believe in the worth of what we are doing, success might pass us by. They are as much a part of our success as all the efforts we make ourselves. They are always there to encourage, speak a kind word, and even tell us when we are wrong. Any recognition or success that comes our way is a direct result of not only our efforts, but the efforts of others. Enjoy being a successful professional, and thank those that helped make it possible.

Each of us must define success for ourselves. What one person strives for may be different than what another strives for, but if both reach their goal, both are successful. The profession of environmental health is so diversified that the success of the profession depends upon the success of a variety of individuals. When the environmental health profession moves forward, we are collectively successful.


How to Succeed in Anything

Step1. Always be positive. We can find a solution to every problem. In thinking positive, your outlook is now easier and better enjoyed. When you think positive, even failing becomes a positive event and allows your thought process to expand.

Step2. Don’t make excuses. This is the biggest waste of time in our lives. We make excuses for our lack of drive, our laziness, and because we’re used to it. When you focus on the negative, you’re guaranteed your result will be the negative. Break the habit of making excuses!

Step3. Enjoy what you’re doing. Even if you don’t like what you have to do, convince yourself otherwise. Find the things you like about a particular task and focus on that. If you love what you’re doing, you’ll succeed.

Step4. Take responsibility. Most people blame their problems on the world, someone else, or something they can’t control. Ask yourself this: Is what I’m trying to do possible? Have other people done this? If the answer is “yes” its up to you.

Step5. Find a solution. There is a solution to every problem. This is a fact. If you think like a winner, you’ll not get caught up in the negative thought process that will ruin you and perpetuate your mistakes. Thinking like a winner will allow you to find a way to do anything.

Step6. Set your goals. Your goal is to accomplish the task at hand. Set that goal, focus on it, imagine it completed and it will happen. Maybe not today, but it will happen if you focus on it daily.

Step7. Be accountable. It’s up to you and only you to succeed in anything. You can sit around and blame everything and everyone, and that’s exactly what people that consistently fail do. A winner focuses on how to win.

Step8. Focus on the completed task. If you imagine yourself completing the task over and over, your mind will believe the task is not only possible, but already complete. Remember, you get whatever you focus on.

Step9. Learn from your mistakes. If you don’t learn and adapt to each mistake, you’ll just continue the same pattern. If you learn from every mistake, you get closer to the result each time you fail.

Step10. Take advice from others. This works well when the person giving the advice has proven experience with your task. If they don’t, be sure to consider their suggestions carefully. You’ll reach your goal faster when an expert shows you the least path of resistance.

Step11. Don’t allow yourself to be convinced otherwise by anyone. If you let others use their negative and thought prohibitive banter to guide you, you’ll get nowhere. The most significant accomplishments are achieved when we beat the odds. It’s done every day.

Step12. Welcome change. In welcoming change, we adapt to the future. In moving forward, we must adapt and change to everything. And that is progress.


Some other guidelines in Strategic planning

a.Identify your area of excellence

"What do I do especially well?"

What is your area of excellence, your area of superiority? What is your personal competitive advantage over the other people in your field?

This is a vital question in personal strategic planning. You will be truly successful only to the degree that you become excellent at the most important part of your work. One of your chief responsibilities in life is to select the area of excellence that can have the greatest positive impact on your career and your income, and then throw your whole heart into becoming very, very good in that one area.

You should follow this strategy as well. What are the core competencies you will need to be in the top 10 percent of your field three to five years from now? How do they differ from your key skills today? What can you do today to begin developing those additional skills and abilities? Whatever competencies you will need to be the best, set them as a goal, make a plan, and begin working on developing them every day.

b.Focus on your highest-value activities

"What are the 10 to 20 percent of my activities that could account for 80 to 90 percent of my results?"

What are the tasks you do today that yield the highest returns and rewards relative to the cost and effort of performing those activities? How can you organize your work life so that you are doing more and more of these higher-value tasks?

c.Remove your key constraints

"What are the critical constraints on my ability to achieve my goals?"

In every work or production process, there are a series of steps between where you are today and the result you want to achieve tomorrow. Invariably, one of these steps is the constraint or chokepoint that determines the speed at which you complete the process and achieve your goal.

For example, between your home and your office, there may be a stretch of road or freeway that sometimes is extremely crowded. Before that stretch and after that stretch, the traffic is light. But if that stretch is jammed, this can be the major bottleneck that determines how fast you cover the entire distance.

If your goal is to double your income, the first thing to do is identify the different steps you must take to get from the income you have today to the income you want. You then examine each of these steps and determine which step is the limiting factor that determines how fast you achieve your income goal.

Ask yourself, "Why aren't I at my goal already?"
If you want to double your income, why aren't you earning twice as much already? If you want to spend more time with your family or friends, why aren't you doing it already? Often, forcing yourself to develop the answers to these questions will enable you to see the critical constraint that is holding you back.

Here is an important point. Contend that fully 80 percent of all the constraints that are holding you back from achieving your most desired goals are inside you. Only 20 percent are on the outside. Fully 80 percent of the reasons that your company is not achieving its goals are inside the company, in some way. Fully 80 percent of the reasons that you are not making more money or increasing your free time are within yourself. Your major constraints usually lie within your own habits, beliefs, attitudes, opinions, skills, and abilities.

When you want to accomplish great things, you always start with yourself and work out from there. Ask yourself, "What is it in me that is holding me back?" You are in control of yourself. You can have an enormous effect on what you do personally or fail to do. But you have only a minor influence on external factors and other people. Always start with yourself.

d. Choose to take action

"What specific action or actions am I going to take immediately based on my answers to these questions?"

The purpose of strategic thinking and planning is to choose the actions you are going to take to bring about different results from what you are achieving today.

Some basic and easy ways on how to become successful in your life or otherwise, ways for personal development are:

1. You need to relax
Relaxation exercises range from traditional forms of meditation that have their roots in Eastern cultures to modern systematic relaxation exercises that have been scientifically developed and are more suited to the western way of thinking. They help to reduce the intensity of stress symptoms (headaches, migraines, anxiety, insomnia, etc.) but also in preparing the individual to recognize the symptoms from their initial stages. Their common characteristic is that the person with constant practice can acquire the habit of thinking and acting more calm and functional. Acting more calm can help you think and concentrate better and will help you to become successful in your life.

2. You need to use your time efficiently
People complain that they do not have enough time available. But more often the problem is not the time in quantity but in the way we manage our time. Important elements in proper time management are the do-to lists, prioritization, and the ability to focus on one task at a time, the ability to recognize and set targets. With proper time management you will have more time to think and plan how to become successful in your life.

3. Demanding Behaviour
Demand behaviour techniques aim to strengthen the capacity of individuals to defend their rights without denying the rights of others and without being aggressive or insulting. In this way you can face the appropriate interpersonal relations and also to learn how to say "no" where appropriate and when necessary, to express your feelings rather than been passive and inactive. Learning to sometimes say no will help you decide what is best for you and you can change your life by being selective on what to do and on what no to do.

4. You need to learn how to solve your problems
Being able to solve your problems is a major step on becoming successful. Problems are present in daily life and if you find ways to solve them then this will really change your life.

Some techniques for problem management are:
1) Definition of the problem
2) Alternative solutions to the problem
3) Choosing the right strategy to address the problem
4) Proper design of the selected strategy (where, when, how)
5) Implementation of the solution
6) Evaluation The problems never stop! The basic rule is this: instead of facing problems automatically with our usual style and approach, to begin to look reasonable and separately each problem, create alternatives and choose the best solution, according to the importance of the problem and our experience.


5. You need to be dynamic
In order to have a positive and dynamic presence you need to be able to frankly and directly express your feelings and ideas, both negative and positive. To do this you must create a good contact with yourself and with your feelings! In conclusion, it must be noted that there are a lot of ways on how to become successful. This tips only server as a quick guide to help you get started. The whole process is difficult and sometimes it takes time. This is not always something bad. Instead, it helps us be alert, can warn us against possible dangers and helps us prepare better.


More other strategies for personal strategic planning:

• Trust in Divine Providence

Every path we take every step we make, trust in God. When you feel like you are not sure of your chosen path, trust in the Lord that you are taking the right one and if the day has come when you feel like you’re not really fit to it, then learn to let go of it. I had gone so many of this instance. So I could say, it is the best strategy. I have to pray that what I planned to myself abides and fits to what are his plans for me. We really don’t know our real purpose unless we learn to understand it and pray it to God. I have to pray that God guides me, enlightens me and helps me to have the knowledge and wisdom that I may enable to solve existing problems and obstacles along the way to reach my dream.


• Have that confidence


Following the trust in God is to trust and believe in ourselves. Even if others believe in you that you have the capacity to do certain jobs, you are skilled and everything all will be useless without your confidence. If you don’t have the confidence that you may surpass the challenges you are facing in you studies, then definitely, it’s also a blurry result that you can. In applying for a job, you also have to be confident enough to comply the necessary requirements the employee needed for you to be accepted in their organization. In working for your job, it is also the same thing. You need your confidence that you can do it properly lessening the scolds and chides of your boss. That’s how it is.

• Do a Hard work

Even if I already have the above two but I don’t have the third, then definitely, I would not be able to reach my goal. It is because doing works hard simply means that we want the best result out of it. And if the outcome would not be the same as one we expected, then we could not feel some guilt because we already know that we have done our best. And if the outcome would be pleasant to us, then we can say that that is the best result we can get for our hard work.

• Being responsible

I have to be responsible of my self. As much as possible don’t learn to depend on others and be responsible of the choices I make with no regrets. Not only this, I also have to do my responsibilities as a student now, and a successful employee in the future or even an employer. Do the necessary duties in doing my own job. It is because why do I expect of the success in the future when I’m not doing the right thing to be successful.

•Have the Spirit of sacrifice

Sometimes, you have to sacrifice something just to fulfill the desired outcome. A simple instance is from being a student who wants to enjoy with her many-year unseen friends, but because of her studies to do for the final exams and projects, he has to sacrifice one thing. Here comes the pressure but because of her determination to pass all of her subjects for the semester, she has to sacrifice one thing even if it cost her once in a lifetime enjoyment with her friend. It sounds to be a ridiculous example but at least I believe I already shared what I mean. Anyway, there are so many examples that relate to this strategy.

• Self-discipline or self-denial

It is also important to control myself in all circumstances in my studies and work. Sometimes I also have to deny yourself and your impulses towards things you really love for the sake of the goal you are achieving. Be it short-term or long-term. In order to succeed, I also have to train my conduct in order to improve myself as a student and a career woman and a person. Any improvement in your life is your improvement. Right? When you know how to control and manage yourself, then you could also be followed by you employees. Be a leader of yourself first before becoming a leader of the other.


• Manage time wisely

It’s in college days that I realized the essence of deadlines. Maybe because our teachers in elementary and high school are not that strict on implementing these things unlike our instructor and facilitators in college and maybe because I’m not that time conscious before. Now, I learned that time really is as precious as gold. When I watched at the news saying something which happened unexpectedly, that’s when I’m enlightened about the importance of every second of our life. That’s why I also consider being curious on time management. It’s also because you have to focus in everything and that everything should not be focused simultaneously. You are going to be insane. So I have to focus one thing at a time. In short, I should learn to wisely manage the time allotted and to be conscious on deadlines. It is a part of a good performance of a student and a worker.

• Be flexible

It means that I have the capacity to be bent over and over again without being damaged or injured but it doesn’t mean that I have to be like Lastikman. It is just that I have to have the capacity to perceive changes and is able to adapt easily and wisely on these changes. These adjectives refer literally to what is capable of withstanding stress without injury and figuratively to what can undergo change or modification.

• Understanding

It is also needed to understand things on how it is in the reality. Actually, I can have many definitions to it but the important thought is the name itself. Understanding means to have a comprehension, good sense, or discernment. Understanding on all things, be it on the unfavorable circumstances, problems, solutions, teachers, classmates, facilitators, instructors, employers, colleagues and even you job.

• Possess selflessness not selfishness

Before, I have no distinction between the two terms. But when I listen to the songs and read some articles, I had noticed that selflessness always refer to the good side while the selfishness on the bad. Later, I had realized that I was simply right because the former is the complete opposite of the latter. Selflessness means showing unselfish concern for the welfare of others. It is just synonymous to self-denying, self-forgetful, self-forgetting, and unselfish. Selfishness is being self-centered and egoistic. The quality or state of being selfish; exclusive regard to one's own interest or happiness; that supreme self-love or self-preference which leads a person to direct his purposes to the advancement of his own interest, power, or happiness, without regarding those of others.

IT people are selfless in nature because they provide solutions for the benefit of the other but not all of these people are worthy to be called. “Solutions provider” as they call it is tagged to IT and it’s also important that IT have been given the credit for the service they render. Be it on cash, rewards or salaries. But some are too demanding for the price of the service to the level of thinking that it is okay for their clients do not know how to use computers. For me, IT people should get the proper credits of their services and so must I.

• Real life experience

All those aforementioned strategies will not be enough to really fulfill my dreams if do not have the last one. Experience means to apprehend an object, thought, or emotion through the senses or mind, active participation in events or activities, leading to the accumulation of knowledge or skill, the knowledge or skill so derived and the totality of such events in the past of an individual.

In the way to reaching our goals, we have to have experience on the different fields that are really useful. These experiences made us equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills needed for the fulfillment of our dream.


The Strategic Planning Process

1. Mission and Objectives
The mission statement describes the company's business vision, including the unchanging values and purpose of the firm and forward-looking visionary goals that guide the pursuit of future opportunities.

Guided by the business vision, the firm's leaders can define measurable financial and strategic objectives. Financial objectives involve measures such as sales targets and earnings growth. Strategic objectives are related to the firm's business position, and may include measures such as market share and reputation.

2. Environmental Scan
The environmental scan includes the following components:
* Internal analysis of the firm
* Analysis of the firm's industry (task environment)
* External macroenvironment (PEST analysis)

The internal analysis can identify the firm's strengths and weaknesses and the external analysis reveals opportunities and threats. A profile of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats is generated by means of a SWOT analysis

An industry analysis can be performed using a framework developed by Michael Porter known as Porter's five forces. This framework evaluates entry barriers, suppliers, customers, substitute products, and industry rivalry.

3. Strategy Formulation
Given the information from the environmental scan, the firm should match its strengths to the opportunities that it has identified, while addressing its weaknesses and external threats.

To attain superior profitability, the firm seeks to develop a competitive advantage over its rivals. A competitive advantage can be based on cost or differentiation. Michael Porter identified three industry-independent generic strategies from which the firm can choose.

4. Strategy Implementation
The selected strategy is implemented by means of programs, budgets, and procedures. Implementation involves organization of the firm's resources and motivation of the staff to achieve objectives.

The way in which the strategy is implemented can have a significant impact on whether it will be successful. In a large company, those who implement the strategy likely will be different people from those who formulated it. For this reason, care must be taken to communicate the strategy and the reasoning behind it. Otherwise, the implementation might not succeed if the strategy is misunderstood or if lower-level managers resist its implementation because they do not understand why the particular strategy was selected.

5. Evaluation & Control
The implementation of the strategy must be monitored and adjustments made as needed. Evaluation and control consists of the following steps:

1. Define parameters to be measured
2. Define target values for those parameters
3. Perform measurements
4. Compare measured results to the pre-defined standard
5. Make necessary changes


References:
http://www.careeroverview.com/technology-careers.html
http://ezinearticles.com/?5-Ways-on-How-to-Become-Successful-in-Your-Life&id=2022098
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategic_planning
http://www.unixl.com/dir/information_technology/
http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/strategic-planning/