The start of a new year can be both exciting and intimidating. And this year, we’ve got a brand-new decade beginning! I’m honored to guide you through this month of new beginnings by practicing goal setting, self-accountability, visioning for success and self-forgiveness. Let’s kick-off first with intentional goal setting.
Goal Setting
We all know that in just a few weeks’ time, the best intentions fall flat due to poor planning and follow-through. Rather, define concrete, quantifiable goals that you know you can achieve and measure your progress. I like the SMART planning system for crafting clearly defined objectives. These goals must be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound. Here’s why:
Specific:
Rather than say you want to “get healthy” or “increase revenue”, be specific to motivate you and your team to take act. For example: “I will take the stairs vs. the elevator at work” and “I will grow my business by 10% to achieve my 2020 revenue goals”. This lets you channel your efforts in a specific area.
Measurable:
Your superiors or perhaps investors expect quantifiable results. Improvement in performance year over year is exactly what they want to see. Use numbers or percentages to define your goals for you and your team.
Achievable:
Now that you know what to measure, make sure it’s achievable. For example, can you double sales in a fluctuating market? You don’t want to shoot yourself in the foot by overreaching and then becoming discouraged early in the year.
Realistic:
Stretch goals are great but they need to be realistic when creating your SMART plan. For example, it might not make sense to achieve that next promotion if extensive travel is involved and you are a primary caregiver at home. Make goals reasonable to fit your lifestyle in the current year.
Time-Bound:
Setting a timeline instills momentum, accountability and prevents procrastination. Based on all the steps above, what can you do today, this month, and in the next 90 days to achieve your results? Deadlines are the way to ensure you are on the mark with your goal results.
Research on New Year’s resolutions indicates that 60% of people are failing by the end of January! However, intentional goal setting can keep you on track. It also leads us into self-accountability which we’ll explore next week. Reach out to me if you or your staff need help preparing for the new year.