Hello, and welcome to the Leadership Done Right Podcast, Episode 30: Goal Setting Made Easy — A Proven Goal Setting Strategy.
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I want to start by wishing all of you in the Leadership Done Right community a very merry Christmas! Christmas is my favorite time of the year for a few reasons. I always get to spend time with my family, my birthday is three days after Christmas, and I get time to reflect on my goals and aspirations for the new year.
Goal Setting Made Easy — A Proven Goal Setting Strategy
Whether it is the start of a new year, you are starting a new job or you are starting another new stage in life, it is always a great time to talk about goal setting. Goals and goals setting can be challenging, especially if your goals cause you to stretch more than you have stretched in the past.
I have a proven goal setting strategy that will help you set AND complete challenging goals. AND, now is a great time to set and work towards achieving your goals.
SMART Goals
First, for your goal to be obtainable, it MUST be a SMART goal. SMART is an acronym.
Specific Goals
The “S” stands for “Specific”. Specific goals are clear, concise, and easy to understand. Specific goals explain exactly what you want to do and how to do it. They are NOT lofty, ambiguous, “up in the air” goals that are difficult to understand.
Measurable Goals
The “M” stands for measurable. When a goal is measurable, it is quantifiable. If your goal is not measurable, there is no way to determine if it was successful or not.
Attainable Goals
The “A” stands for attainable. Goals should make you stretch beyond what you felt was possible, but still be attainable. A goal that is far beyond your capacity will likely lead to discouragement and demotivate you from completing goals in the future. Attainable goals are challenging and require concerted effort to complete but promote growth and progress.
Relevant Goals
The “R” stands for relevant. Goals should be relevant to your current purpose. A leader should set goals relevant to their leadership objectives and success. Whatever you are doing, your goals should be relevant.
Timely/Time-bound Goals
The “T” stands for timely or time-bound. Goals should have a specific deadline. If you set goals without a deadline, you will most likely fall short of accomplishing them. Whether it is a product launch, the start of a new activity, a weight loss program or some other type of goal, all goals should have a deadline so you have a goal for completion.
The Plan
Once you have created SMART goals, the second and equally as important part of goal setting is the plan. One can create the perfect SMART goal, but without a plan to accomplish the goal it will never be completed. In order to complete your goals, there are five main parts of the plan that must be executed.
Create an Action Plan
The action plan should have specific steps and milestones you work towards to complete your goals.
Schedule the Goals into Your Life
Take steps towards completing your goals on a regular basis.
Take Action
Follow through on your plan by taking the steps outlined in your plan.
Review the Goals Regularly
When you review them, identify your progress and determine whether or not you are on track.
Refresh the Goals
There are only two valid reasons to stop working towards accomplishing your goals. Either you complete the goal, or the goal is no longer relevant. For those reasons, it is important to refresh your goals.
5 Keys to Create The Effective Plan
When setting a goal, it is imperative that you create a plan to complete your goals. Depending on the nature of the goal, the plan can be short, simple, and to the point. It can also be very long, complex, and require many people and steps to complete. What’s most important is that you have the appropriate plan for your goal.
Although each goal is different and requires different levels of complexity, there are five keys to creating an effective plan regardless of the size of your goal.
1. Create a Clear Picture of the Desired Outcome
Another way of putting it is to “Begin with the end in mind” as Stephen R. Covey would say. When you create a clear picture of the desired outcome, you define what the outcome should be and what success should look like.
2. Create Specific Milestones/Benchmarks
Identify what you expect to accomplish and by when. The specific milestones and benchmarks will help you determine the beginning, middle, and end. Throughout this process, set check points to follow up and review your progress.
3. Determine Resource Requirements
The resources fall into the following categories: time, money, people, equipment, and technology.
4. Identify Potential Resource sources
This sounds similar to point three of determining resource requirements, but it is different because you need to identify where you will get the resources. When you understand potential resource sources, you have a better understanding of the size and complexity of the plan and you know who you will depend on throughout the project.
5. Identify Potential Roadblocks
Because there are so many potential roadblocks, it is important to identify the most likely roadblocks. For the most likely roadblocks, create potential contingency plans that can be utilized if specific roadblocks are encountered.
Resources
Leadership Done Right Ep 30 Goal Setting Made Easy – PDF Handout
For more information on goal setting, check out the following resources:
Wrap-up
Thank you for listening to this episode of the Leadership Done Right podcast. I want to invite each of you to share your thoughts on goal setting with me. You can do that in the comments section below or at the Leadership Done Right Facebook page, or Leadership Done Right LinkedIn Group.
Thank you for listening to this episode of the Leadership Done Right Podcast. If you would like to listen to the next episode of this podcast, please subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, or whatever other podcast platform you use. You can also check out the full list of episodes and platforms with this podcast at LeadershipDoneRight.com/LDRPodcast.
Thanks again for listening! My goal is to help you become a great leader, now go be the best leader you can be!
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