Yes, it’s that time of year for you and your company to set new goals. However, if you are like a lot of people, you may be avoiding it. Some people are even afraid to set goals. Why? The possibility of failure. In today’s culture, we read a lot about successful people who created BIG goals and achieved them. What they often don’t share are the many failures they experienced before the big win!
The truth is, when designed correctly, goals can help you grow professionally, financially and personally. They provide opportunities to learn new skills, become resourceful and resilient when faced with limitations, and build on “soft skills” you didn’t even know you had or needed.
Stop! There Is One Step to Complete First!
Don’t start the new year operating on what happened during 2017 – whether it was good, bad or so-so. (Use an experienced facilitator to create a powerful foundation to build 2018.)
- –Write down objective data regarding what worked and what didn’t in 2017. (See It’s Time to Brag! Business Edition, Chapter 14.)
- –Review the data with your coach and/or your team. As you are sharing, quantify and add often-overlooked items (e.g., what you learned, new and unexpected opportunities, improved relationships, etc.)
- –Acknowledgment is important. Have your coach acknowledge you. Then, individually recognize each team member, no matter how small their contributions may seem. This will strengthen each and every person’s desire to move forward together or to be stronger if someone is leaving.
- –After you’ve completed the above steps, create your goals for 2018!
5 Ways to Create and Pursue Powerful Goals
1.Envision Specific Goals before Turning Them into Written Ones. Envision what is desired or required by company mandate before brainstorming. Create and fine-tune the goals without worrying about how you and the team will achieve them. Many people will rise to a new level of skills when they’re required to do so. Then, as a group, align on written goals and focused actions that will achieve the intended results. Remember, true goals include a deadline, are simple and realistic, and achieve numerically declared results. For example, by 12-31-2018, the launch of a new CRM program will result in 1,000 new clients and 100% customer satisfaction scores.
2.Schedule Focused Action Steps to Make a Positive Difference. Design realistic daily, weekly and monthly action plans that will keep you focused on intended results. Remember, in your excitement, you and your team will initially want to achieve everything very quickly. However, real, sustainable goals take much longer. For example, achieving a million-dollar sales goal in the first three months of 2018 may not be possible for a small company. However, specifically creating a 12-month plan to effectively hire, coach, train and manage your sales team during 2018 will get you there!
3.Tracking Progress Is Critical. Create a simple tracking system to remind the team that they are making positive strides forward. Share numeric results on a consistent and frequent basis. Remember to schedule celebrating the milestones along the way. For example, set up an intranet system that shows the sales results and customer satisfaction scores on a daily basis. This will reinforce the goals and remind everyone to stay focused on the right things.
4.Watch for Things That Don’t Look Right. Here’s what is normal: people miss deadlines, social media venues change algorithms, mistakes and failures occur at key moments, and progress doesn’t happen fast enough for most people (including your boss). Unfortunately, these normal unplanned circumstances often create the no-win blame game! To counter this, on a consistent basis, objectively review what worked and learn from what didn’t work. (See It’s Time to Brag! Business Edition, Chapter 14.) This will strengthen and recommit your team, uncover cover-ups and incorporate overlooked items required to get back on track. (Note: Whatever you do, do NOT change the goal!)
5.Hire a Coach. While you may strongly believe in yourself and your team, this view will only take you so far. The right coach can quickly help you and your team uncover blind spots and get back to reality while holding each and every one accountable for taking focused action steps and achieving intended goals.
Are you ready? Now is the time to complete this year’s goals and create 2018 goals.
©Jeannette Seibly, 2017-2018
Are you ready to create a powerful 2018? Jeannette will guide you through a powerful exercise designed to complete 2017 and prepare you to design a powerful 2018! One new client created an amazing business of her dreams by completing 2017, allowing her to uncover the negative beliefs that got in her way…she’s now ready for a successful 2018. To learn more, contact Jeannette Seibly @ http://SeibCo.com/contact.
Jeannette Seibly is celebrating 25 years as a business coach, advisor and consultant. Do you need to learn how to work together as a team, conduct effective meetings and develop powerful solutions for 2018? Check out her website, or contact Jeannette for a free confidential conversation.