It's the time of year again when we take a moment to look in the rearview mirror and lay out the path forward. Planning for 2023 will inevitably include some form of goal-setting and benchmarking. In addition to helping you achieve the growth you envision, the act of setting goals and understanding what it takes to find success will make you a better professional.
Here are a few tips that I've picked up over 20+ years of working with advisors that will help you set appropriate goals and will also increase the likelihood of achieving those goals.
1) Do You Have the Skills Required to Reach Your Goal?
Is the current version of yourself capable of achieving the goal(s) you set? Are there skills and discipline that you need to acquire to make achieving your goal(s) a possibility? The current version of yourself is good enough to get you where you are, but is it good enough to get you where you want to go? If not, make a list of the required skills and get the training you need.
2) Fall in Love with the Process
Understand that the goal you set is a result, not an action. The growth that you envision may be inspiring but if you are not in love with the process, you're unlikely to achieve the goal. As you set your goals for 2023, understand that the process is more important than the result. If you nail the process, you’ll successfully reach your goal with ease.
3) Plan Your Process
It is okay to set an annual goal, but you are unlikely to achieve that goal if you are not setting benchmarks that apply to smaller time units. While setting a daily goal may seem too granular, understanding the daily activity required to reach your goal is the first step to success.
4) Track Your Process
Once you've gained an understanding of what activity is required to reach your goal, track that activity closely. I recommend printing out a tracking sheet for every day of the week, every week of the month, and every month of the year. Your daily tracking sheet should be next to your computer so you could easily track your daily calls, emails, LinkedIn activity, and conversations.
5) Reward Yourself for Small Successes
You've set your big goal and broken that down into small incremental steps related to specific activities. Now, reward yourself when you've achieved your daily, weekly, or monthly benchmarks. Perhaps there is something that you've been thinking about purchasing or maybe there is a new restaurant you want to check out. Create a weekly reward system reserved for when you hit your benchmarks.
6) Designate an Accountability Partner
If you don’t already have a coach, find someone who will hold you accountable for your activity. It is easy to skip your daily process if you are only accountable to yourself. If you have a partner with whom you check in consistently, you are much more likely to adhere to your plan.
Goal setting is an essential part of growth. It gives you a vision for the future and helps you lay out a plan to achieve. The six steps listed above will help set your goal and understand what is required to find success. The work you put in today will help you reach your goal, and it will make you a better professional.
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