Have you set goals for yourself?
It’s New Year resolutions time. I heard that only 8% of people that set New Year resolutions actually achieve them. A resolution is a decision. A decision without commitment and action becomes an unachieved resolution. I prefer to set personal goals.
Goals need action and attention to become achieved.
If you have ever worked in a corporate environment you’re probably familiar with setting goals. Go ahead it’s ok to groan. It’s not an uncommon reaction. As goals (priorities, objectives, activities, whatever the flavor/label of the month is), become the foundation for performance reviews. Trust me. I know. I’ve lived it. Performance reviews are not always a satisfying experience.
Contributing to something that has meaning is much more satisfying and when your contributions are recognized, that is the icing on the cake.
Setting personal goals is important.
Having goals contributes to your growth, development, health and success. Every year regardless of what is required of the “job” I always set personal goals. Sometimes they may align with my “job” and sometimes they don’t.
It is my personal goals that ultimately contribute to my happiness and success in life.
Due Dates
I set personal goals without specific due dates. This approach isn’t one I would recommend if you’re a procrastinator or generally don’t achieve your goals. I know some procrastinators love to wait and then stress themselves out working to meet a timeline. This motivates them. If that is what works for you then use that approach in your goal setting.
Don’t put your date out too far if you really want to get something done.
When I am setting a goal for myself, I look at things with a monthly or quarterly approach. I have an idea of when I want to get things done and I work toward that. For me, I don’t need the stress that a due date causes me. I’m not fan of “changing due dates”. If I have something important that has to be done by a certain date then I will set a due date and meet the date.
Artificial Due Dates
There is nothing that drives me more insane than when a due date is “artificially” set to try to drive something. Worse is when it’s learned that it’s acceptable to not meet due dates as people aren’t held accountable and a mindset to ” just change the date” at the last minute. This is my biggest pet peeve. Why? It’s because it deflates and kills the motivation of the person who busted their butt, rearranged priorities and commitments to get their work done.
If a date is randomly picked by someone and not met, it’s often a signal that there was never any buy-in to the commitment or agreement made on the commitment by the stakeholders that need to execute the work. If there is no buy-in or agreement made by the stakeholders then it’s usually a sign of a power play which demonstrates a lack of trust or lack of relationship with the stakeholders.
Accountability
How will you hold yourself accountable to achieve your goals?
Integrity is an important value. I strive to meet commitments and hold others accountable to them as well.
Have an accountability buddy or a coach keep you on track and hold you accountable to meet your goals.
Set your goals, be realistic. Drives to achieve them.
