Goal Setting

As a coach this year I have asked my clients to think of 3 words that will act as their compass for the year. Please find below a selection of some of the responses:-

• Connection
• Energy
• Strategic
• Knowledge
• Change
• Well-being

Theses areas of focus can also be used as personal goals, with the help of a Coach they can become tangible. 

There is a very famous case study that proves how important goal setting is:-

In the book “What They Don't Teach You in the Harvard Business School”, Mark McCormack tells a study conducted on students in the 1979 Harvard MBA program. In that year, the students were asked, "Have you set clear, written goals for your future and made plans to accomplish them?" Only three percent of the graduates had written goals and plans; 13 percent had goals, but they were not in writing; and a whopping 84 percent had no specific goals at all.

Ten years later, the members of the class were interviewed again, and the findings, while somewhat predictable, were nonetheless astonishing. The 13 percent of the class who had goals were earning, on average, twice as much as the 84 percent who had no goals at all. And what about the three percent who had clear, written goals? They were earning, on average, ten times as much as the other 97 percent put together.

Once you have recognised the need to make goals and identified your 3 words, the next step is to brainstorm with your coach or initially just yourself and a pen and paper.  James Clear the author of Atomic Habits says "You do not rise to the

level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems". 

The brainstorm will give you some ideas as to how this goal will take shape, and as in the quote you need to then put in place some systems that will lead to you goal.  Our mindset is hugely important, we must be optimistic and realistic about what we can achieve.  If one of your words is "Knowledge" and you identified several courses to attend this maybe to expensive and too much time to commit to.  Be optimistic and realistic and identify ways of achieving the knowledge goal in a variety of ways, online learning, reading, shadowing and of course attending formal training.

Keep evaluating your progress, and monitoring whether the systems and rituals are working for you.  Recently I kept setting a specific day for my goal and I realised it was all too easy to miss.  I have now established a daily routine to touch it and to record progress, the momentum is driving me foward. Share your goal with a Coach and then you will have an accountability Partner to keep you on track with progress and a person to brainstorm new ideas. 

Locke & Latham 1990 say adhere to the 5 principles of Goal Setting:-

1. Commitment
2. Clarity
3. Challenge
4. Complexity
5. Feedback

These principles work really well with your coach, they will help you write down the goals "what gets written gets done". The conversation around the goal will give you the clarity  as to whether the goal is enough of a challenge and the right level of complexity.  The Coach can provide feedback, however it would be actively encouraged to find many sources of continuous feedback to gauge progress.

Finally how do we ensure that we stick to our goals:-

• Make sure you can see them and that you touch them regularly 
• Be sure you know Why they matter?
• Recognise any triggers that take you away from focusing on your goals
• Most importantly don't do it alone, identify a coach to work with you

Please do get in touch for a one to one coaching session bev@nuggetsoflearning.co.uk