Although January is typically the time of year when we turn to goal setting, too often, it is a waste of time. Let’s be honest. How many times have you achieved all of your yearly goals?
The problem is not with goals. Goals provide focus, create momentum and help us stay on track.
The problem is with the goal setting process itself – choosing the right goals and setting up the right support for them.
Before you set goals this year, keep these 6 things in mind:
1. Start with your current goals.
When goal setting, keep your previous goals in mind to create a sense of flow. Don’t just start over anew each year. For goals that have been accomplished, identify the next step. If you didn’t achieve the goal and it’s important, bring it forward. Consider whether it needs to be made more crisp or tweaked in some way.
2. Connect your goals to a larger purpose that shows why they are important, and helps answer the question “What’s next” once they are achieved. When you are clear about where you’re going, your goals become the means to achieve it.
There’s an old joke about how many therapists it takes to change a light bulb. The answer is “Just one. But the light bulb has to really want to change.” The same is true for goals. If you choose a goal because you think it’s something you “should” do, it will be difficult to stay committed. This is why so many diets fail.
Set goals that move you toward what you really desire. It will be easier to stay committed to a diet if you see exactly how it will help you live a more fulfilled life.
3. Goal setting is not always a logical process.
Usually I recommend making your goals SMART – specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound. However, sometimes it can make a difference to just hold the intention of something you really want to do, even if you don’t have any idea of how you will achieve it.
4. Write your goals down and put them somewhere visible.
The act of writing goals is important. It’s not enough to just keep them in mind. The act of writing them helps you make them more clear and crisp.
Then, put your written goals somewhere visible, where you’ll see them everyday.
Goals that are filed in a drawer are likely to be forgotten. You don’t have to study them each day. If they are somewhere visible, you eyes will glance over them regularly, giving you a gentle subliminal reminder.
5. Don’t keep your goals a secret.
Make your goals be visible. If you share them with others, they will be able to point out opportunities you’re not aware of. They might have some suggestions you haven’t thought of. And they will be able to offer support as you proceed.
6. Set up processes and practices that support your goals.
Supporting processes and practices are the engine that enable you to take continued action on your goals. On a personal level – consider what regular practices and routines are needed to develop the habits that will support your goal. – regular exercise time?
For a team, look at both your formal and informal ways of working together. Consider processes for communication, accountability, training and rewards. For example, if teamwork is one of your goals– are there rewards for team performance or is the focus on individual contributions? Systems that are not aligned with your vision and goals will derail you. Make sure you have a good feedback system in order to know how you’re doing.
Simple, but powerful advice for goal setting. Thanks, Jesse.
Thanks, Dan. Great to see you here.
I LOVE this post Jesse!
I’m currently doing something different than setting New Year’s resolutions. I’ve been working through a Quest 2015 ‘series’ to help create my vision for 2015. I signed up to the group late and will be finishing late…fortunately the leader of the group has decided to keep it open throughout the year since we all have been gleaning so much from it all!
In addition, I’ve been rewatching a dvd series I purchased on feminine awakening and just last night part of the focus was on setting intention and instead of trying to force it, simply keeping your heart open to receiving it. The speaker used the analogy (and one I’m quite fond of on my own before I heard her use it!) was waiting for the wave to come in. If we try to ride the wave too soon, we miss it. If we wait too long, we also miss it. But setting the intention and being open helps us to learn how to wait and ride the ‘wave’ when it comes in at the right time.
At this stage of my journey, I’m still at a point BETWEEN what I learned in terms of being ‘driven’ in this culture (including military training) and learning how to shift into other ways of being (things I’ve been learning from other cultures, religions, and traditions).
I used to be one who wanted and preferred a ‘formula’. Such as SMART goals. A specific PLAN that would guarantee certain outcomes. However, I learned that even with a plan, it doesn’t guarantee ‘anything and everything’. There are many variables that can impact and affect the ultimate outcome of a plan. That’s not to say we shouldn’t make plans! : ) Only to share that I recognized that when I was trying to follow plans or formulas so strictly, I was less open to the natural ‘flow’ of my own values and intentions. Which very much reminds me of the saying, ‘follow the spirit and not the letter of the law’.
So right now, it’s very much learning how to create a plan and yet be open to ‘the flow’ without closing myself off to new opportunities or new ways of being or thinking because I”m too caught up in a ‘plan’.
Also, some goals are far easier than others to create the steps to achieving our goals, such as weight loss. Others (like finding a life mate) are more difficult to plan for in tangible ways because so much relies on things outside of our control. (we can’t force someone to fall in love with us) So in this case, we prepare as much as we are able to on our ends, and the rest is out of our control. One that is difficult to set a deadline on. ‘I will have a mate by ‘x’ date!’ << If only it was that easy! (grins)
Thanks for another great post Jesse and wishing you and yours a Happy New year filled with more learning, discovery, adventure, love, and joy!
Thanks for sharing your experience, Samantha. The wave analogy is excellent. The desire is to be an active participant in creating the life you desire. The challenge is to find the balance between making it a project it and allowing it to unfold. You also raise another important principle of goal setting – ultimately you can only set goals for yourself.
Happy New Year Jesse!
I love #1. It’s so tempting to have everything new in the New Year! But it is also discouraging to leave an unfinished goal just to pick up a new one.
Big hugs to you!
Chery
Thanks for raising this point. I think the issue is intentionality – It’s ok to say a goal didn’t work or wasn’t the right goal, but it’s important to be intentional about putting closure on it.
Warm wishes for the new year, Chery!
Jesse – such a great post, thank you for sharing. I can appreciate #5. Making public statements help with accountability as well. I also like #2 – I have written on my office whiteboard (WIN – What’s Important Now) which I heard in an interview of Lou Holtz. Being able to connect activity with a large purpose helps when the ‘Inbox’ starts to get overloaded.
Thanks again for a wonderfully inspiring read!
Thanks for sharing the WIN acronym. Too often we don’t separate “urgent” from “important” (which I discussed in my post “How to Maximize Your Energy”). Connecting to a larger purpose helps us know what’s important.
Thanks for adding to the conversation, Chris.
A happy and prosperous 2015 Jesse to you and everyone of your commentors. May I please share my belief system that I find works for me, so much so that the act of annual resolutions blend into my lifestyle on a routine basis. Sometimes daily often weekly. I remember the word MYCASKI and what each letter means to me. M=Make things happen Y=Yesterday is over don’t dwell on it C=Challenge yourself A=be Accountable always S=Set an example K=improve your Knowledge I=Integrate relationships. Consideration and Practice of these mindsets really benefits me at work, at home and in my community. I truly believe that this routine eases the achievement of personal resolutions whenever I commit. Best Regards Raymond
Thanks for your good wishes and for sharing your MYCASKI belief system, Raymond.
Spot on, Jesse. But then again, you are the master at vision and goals as evidenced by your book: Full Steam Ahead. I noticed that for years, I kept bringing over a stated goal but made no progress on it. I realized it was a “wish” but I had no energy to really make it happen. I put it aside. I also think that a preamble to goals is to set intentions. For example, my intention is to create work the allows me to use my writing and speaking in ways that bring me and others joy and insights. Yes–it is broad but it also opens a world of possibilities for doing things that, right now, I might not even know. It becomes the litmus test for what do I say “yes” or “no” to.
Happy New Year!!
Much appreciation for your insights, Eileen! What you are calling “intention” fits well with what I’m discussing in point #2. “creating work the allows me to use my writing and speaking in ways that bring me and others joy and insights” is a larger purpose that you can set goals around. When you see how your goals support a larger purpose, it’s easier to find the energy to make them happen. You might have other larger purposes as well, for example “being present for special moments with my family.” Purpose shows why your goal is important, and as you say, becomes the litmus test for what goals to set and what decisions to make. Taking it a step further, when you add values to the mix, and a picture of what it looks like when you are fulfilling your purpose and values, you have a powerful vision that will guide your journey.
I saved this to read when I could focus and write out how I would use these points in goal setting. I got a friend to join me in setting goals – maybe not for a full year, but with a deadline. I’m not all that enthused about a new year being the pivotal moment in which aspirations are renewed. I’m glad we can set a new goal in the middle of week in the middle of the month any time of the day. It’s motivating to take a marker and scratch through the item on my list that’s been in front of my face for months. I’m working hard on #6 today. I told a friend yesterday I’m writing a playbook for my goals. It made perfect sense to me. 🙂 She gave me a blank stare. LOL I love this post. It’s just what I needed for this part of setting goals. And yes, it’s well past the new year and that’s working for me. They are my goals after all.
Great attitude, Jane! They are YOUR goals and you own them. The idea of writing one-year goals doesn’t make sense. Some goals will be completed sooner and new ones will need to be set; some goals will take longer. For goals to be effective, you need to have a regular relationship with them, track progress, and possibly change or modify them as unforeseen circumstances arise.
Here’s a question to ponder. How does your goal connect to your vision, your values and your purpose? If you are mission driven and one of your goals is to see how some particular dimension of your vision (goal) might be realized this week, this month or this year, then you’re on the right track. Press on, regardless!
Helpful questions that deepen the understanding of what I was getting at in point #2. Thanks for adding to the conversation, Gary.
Great post Jesse!! Especially like #4. Totally agree that our goals must be in writing for us to increase our chances of achieving them. I find that goals that go unwritten tend to be more of wishes than goals. Action steps will be developed when we write the goals down and place them where we can notice them each day. I plan on using this post with my team as we work to establish department goals!! Thanks for sharing!
Agree – one of the key differentiators between a goal and a wish is whether it’s written down. I think the act of putting it into language and shaping the language forces us to get more clear in our thinking. Delighted to hear you’ll be using this with your team. It would be great to look for some goals that cross over among all team members and where there is shared responsibility. Thanks for sharing your thoughts here!
Hi Jesse,
a) I read all the article many times, all the comments and coulnd’t resist to share it on my facebook and linkedin pages.
b) Just noticed you wrote a book with Ken, I read his book years ago “The On-Time, On-Target Manager” and appreciated much ! I think I’m going to read it thrice !
c) Concerning N°1, it can be important to scan why a given goal didn’t get accomplished, and how we can do better next time (what worked well ? what didn’t, what is missing ? – are good questions to aks ourselves).
d) About the 5, I think we have to carefully choose which persons we would share our goals with, because some people (specially negative or pessimistic ones) would not give a hand on helping us go ahead !
e) I am more getting focused on the N°6 : “Set up processes and practices that support your goals.” Starting goal setting is already a part of that N°6 : writing our goals (not only in a yearly basis for some of them), making a sense of flow and aligning them on a larger puspose (a kind of planning what are the next and next steps…), following up, reviewing and shaping them, etc…
f) My question is just about key tips to set up that “practices” that support our goals. Can we list and explain some of them we should have as habits ?
Thanks much.
Hi Jean, I’m glad you found my article helpful and appreciate your thoughts. In regard to your question, yes, it is a good idea to list your habits that are needed to support your goal and then review your own habits and see how they line up.