Soon, the curtain will fall on 2014; and, one second later, the curtain will rise on 2015. Great Leaders have a vision of what the coming year will look like and they share that vision in the goals that they set. I had the privilege of working with a coach a while ago and she shared these goal setting techniques with me.
- Decide what you really want. Great Leaders know what they really want. They know … they don’t think they want something … they know what they want. That want is a passion that drives them forward. It motivates them every waking hour of their day.
- They believe that their goal is attainable. The belief of a Great Leader is strong; so strong, in fact, that they cannot imagine that the goal won’t be reached. Not only is the goal a part of their vision of the future, they envision themselves having already attained it.
- Their vision is specific. Ask Great Leaders about their vision and they will tell you all about it. If you listen closely, you find that the vision is very specific … they know exactly what the final outcome will look like; what it will feel like to reach it and mark the goal “got it!”
- Their goals have timetables. Great Leaders know that time is of the essence and they apply this knowledge to their visions and their goals. “Someday” is not an appropriate timetable; “by December 31st, 2015” is a very specific timeframe for a goal. Great Leaders establish a timetable and then measure their progress toward the goal against this timetable. On any specific day, Great Leaders can tell you if they are “on track” to reach their goal by the end date; if they are ahead of schedule; if they are behind schedule. Knowing their status in reference to the timetable helps the Great Leader determine if more work must be done faster or if they can reach the goal sooner than anticipated.
Next week, we’ll take a closer look at goal setting and establish the parameters for setting meaningful goals that lead to accomplishments that may be greater than you have ever foreseen.
Tom Hoisington is a speaker, trainer, and author whose goal is to provide leaders and potential leaders with tools that empower them to build teams that are creative and cost effective along with a clearer understanding of how personality types interact within those teams. He can be contacted at tom.hoisington@eagleoneresources.com