January 14, 2025 • 45 mins
Are you setting goals or just dreaming? Is your team aligned to the business goals you've passed down to them or are they spinning in confusion?
Do you have a process for setting, communicating, and pursuing your goals?
In this episode, Bernadette Boas delves into the art of effective goal setting within the corporate environment. She highlights the critical steps and strategies necessary for setting realistic, specific, and manageable goals that drive success and foster team collaboration. Understanding why many people fail at their New Year’s resolutions within the first 17 days, Bernadette shares key insights on maintaining motivation and focus. Tune in to learn actionable tips and avoid common pitfalls in goal setting!
For a team, goals provide e a clear direction, motivate team members to work together, enhance collaboration, and enable measurable progress, ultimately leading to better overall results and a stronger sense of purpose within the team. Without them, teams can lack focus and struggle to achieve optimal performance
We discuss:
- why most goals fail
- how to craft not just a powerful SMART goal but a SMARTY goal that actually work
- And the key do’s and don’ts to avoid the pitfalls that derail even the best intentions.
- Tools you can use
Whether you’re managing a team, a project, or your own career trajectory, this episode will give you actionable strategies to set goals that inspire action and deliver results.
Additional Resources:
- For a free SMARTY Goal template, visit: BallofFireCoaching
Follow and Connect:
- Subscribe to the podcast for more episodes and insights HERE
Tune In:
- Don’t miss out on gaining valuable strategies for effective goal setting. Listen now for insights that can transform how you manage your career, team, and projects.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Have you ever set a goal for your team only to find
it fizzle out before the quarterends?
Maybe you've been handed downsome very vague objectives from
up above, leaving you and yourteam frustrated, confused and
spinning your wheels.
Welcome to Shedding theCorporate Pitch, where we cut
through the noise and reallyfocus on what drives results.
(00:22):
I'm Bernadette Bowes, executivecoach, and I am dedicated to
helping corporate professionalsjust like you to lead with
clarity, purpose and impact.
In today's episode, we're divinginto the art of effective goal
setting For a team.
Goals really provide cleardirection, motivate team members
to work together and enhancecollaboration and enables
(00:46):
measurable progress, ultimatelyleading to better overall
results and a stronger sense ofpurpose within the team.
Without them, teams can reallylack focus and struggle to
achieve optimal performance.
So we're going to discuss whymost goals fail and how to craft
not only powerful, smart goals,but really powerhouse smarty
(01:10):
goals, and what are the key do'sand don'ts to avoid the
pitfalls that derail even thebest intentions.
And, lastly, what tools can yoube using in order to enhance
your goal setting and execution?
Whether you're managing a team,a project or your own career
trajectory, this episode willgive you actionable strategies
(01:32):
to set goals that inspire actionand deliver results.
Let's dive in.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
Welcome to Shedding the Corporate Bitch, the podcast
that transforms today'smanagers into tomorrow's
powerhouse leaders.
Your host, bernadette Boas,executive coach and author,
brings you into a world wherethe corporate grind meets
personal growth and success ineach and every episode.
With more than 25 years incorporate trenches, bernadette's
own journey from beingdismissed as a tyrant boss to
(01:58):
becoming a sought-afterleadership coach and speaker
illustrates the very essence oftransformation that she now
inspires in others with her tips, strategies and stories.
So if you're ready to shed thebitches of fear and insecurity,
ditch the imposter syndrome andstep into the role of the
powerhouse leader you were bornto be, this podcast is for you.
Let's do this.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
I have to admit, I have been a very intentional
goal setter for a very long time, making sure that I'm thinking
through, intentionally andpurposely, what it is I want to
pursue and achieve and why thatis, and getting it down on paper
in a very specific, clear andmeasurable way in order for me
(02:42):
to really know that each andevery day when I get up, I know
what I need to be doing.
And that's what I want for you,for you and your team, to
really understand.
Why is it you're getting upeach and every morning to go to
work, work your little tail offand to achieve your goals,
achieve a bonus, achieve apromotion, whatever the case
(03:06):
might be.
But I want you to keep in mindsome very common sayings that
are out there that when youreally think about it and you
consider your focus on goalsetting and execution and
achievement, they very wellmight be true, the first one
being dreams without goals arejust dreams.
Think about that.
Dreams without goals are justdreams.
(03:29):
Without a plan, without thought, without measurements.
They are just wishes.
So we have dreams without goalsare just dreams.
Nice to haves, wannabes, hope,those kind of things.
(03:52):
And goals without a plan arejust wishes.
Yes, you might define a goal,but if you don't actually put
together a plan that, once againagain, is actionable,
measurable, time-bound, etcetera, then they're just wishes
that you would want to achieve.
So think about it.
(04:12):
There's been times over theyears where I have stated to
myself okay, I want to get aparticular client, I want to
lose weight, I want to completemini or sprint triathlons, and
yet I really never put a plan inplace in order to achieve those
(04:32):
things.
I have a number of clients whowill do the same at the
beginning of the year, lay outexactly what they want to do
from a goal perspective, butthen it's too general and too
vague and therefore there'sreally nothing that they're
focused on to start executing,against measuring and achieving,
(04:53):
and then they wonder why theyfall flat or even they give up
on them or fail on them.
So what we want to be sure thatwe all are doing is being very
intentional, very thoughtfulabout the planning, about the
defining of your goals.
(05:13):
So they are a tool that givesyou energy and focus and
excitement about what it isyou're looking to pursue and
achieve.
Now let's talk about thebenefits of goals.
There are some experts out therethat basically will state that
you don't need to have goals tobe successful, and that is one's
(05:37):
opinion.
I have found over the years,not only in the work that I've
done over the last 16 years withcorporate professionals, but
even through my own personal andprofessional lifetime that when
I had a well-defined goal and aplan to support it, and then I
also had the accountability inplace, there was nothing that
(06:00):
was going to stop me fromachieving that goal.
When I lacked any of thoseelements and I was relying on oh
well, I have it in my head, Idon't need to put it on a piece
of paper Well then I'm juststarting to grab at things, I'm
starting to throw things at thewall to see what sticks, and
(06:23):
eventually I find myself veryfrustrated, very overworked,
very empty around what it isthat I'm trying to achieve, and
eventually and most of the timeI don't achieve it, I pretty
much walk away from it and kindof give up on it.
So we want to be sure that youreally understand the benefits
(06:45):
of goal setting for yourself andfor your team.
So then you do put into placethe tools that are proven to
help you be far more successfulthan maybe you have in the past
and or minimize the stress andminimize the risk of you not
achieving what it is you want inyour work and life.
So some of the benefits that wecan talk through are they do
(07:09):
provide clear direction, and Iknow you probably have heard
hundreds of times the analogy ofif you were to take a road trip
from Atlanta to California andyour goal is to reach California
in a certain number of days, soforth and so on.
Would you really get in the carwithout a roadmap of how to get
(07:34):
to California, without reallylooking at ways to determine if
there's any road closures,bridge closures, situations
going on that are going to stallyou or prevent you from taking
that path that you've laid out?
Would you really get in the carbeforehand without gas?
Would you get in the carwithout sufficient monies or
(07:57):
credit cards or some means ofbeing able to buy food, lodging,
so forth and so on?
No, if you have a goal of goingfrom Atlanta to California,
you're most likely going to sitdown and really lay out what it
is you need, how you're going toget there, what are the
roadblocks and the challengesand the objections that you're
(08:18):
going to get along the way, soforth and so on.
So that's why goals reallyprovide literally, in some cases
, very clear direction.
All right, and then, of course,if you've ever spoken to your
team members and ask them aboutwhat it is that would help them
(08:39):
be more effective, moreefficient, more energized and
excited about the work that theydo, most likely what you'll
find because I have found itover the last 16 years of
talking to hundreds and hundredsof employees and their managers
they will tell you that theyjust need more clarity, more
direction, more understanding ofwhy they're working on
(09:04):
something and, overall, morefeedback regarding the work and
the goals that have been putinto place and, most likely,
passed down to them.
So it also provides your teammembers, which is what you
really, as a leader, should befocused on.
It provides your team membersthat confidence, that clarity,
(09:25):
that focus, that certainty andeven trust in you that you have
a plan, you know what it is thatyou're all trying to achieve
and you're going to besupportive and successful in
getting them there.
Not to say that there won't beups and downs along the way, but
(09:47):
at the same time, along withyour plan, where you make
adjustments and take off things,add things, it builds that
confidence and trust that youwill get them to the end point,
to the success line, and, ofcourse, that motivation creates
the energy in them, theconfidence, the excitement.
(10:09):
At the same time, it reallyensures that there's keen
collaboration amongst you andthe team members and amongst
themselves.
So you meet with the team, youprovide the overview of the
goals, maybe a detailed drilldown of how you're going to
measure what actions need to betaken, when things need to be
(10:31):
done, who's going to be assignedwhat, and then that helps them
together to collaborate todiscuss any issues or challenges
or ideas or options as they goto execute and achieve a task, a
project, an overall goal.
It really enhancescollaboration and, of course,
(10:52):
you're going to have a tool thatyou can then use to measure the
progress that you and the teamare making.
Without measurements, you'releft to kind of flail as far as,
am I going to meet thatdeadline?
Am I going to get the resultsthat we're looking for?
When you have everyone lined uparound goals, around a plan,
(11:15):
around a timeline, then not onlyare they motivated and
energized and excited andthey're collaborating better and
they're performing andproducing better.
Well, that's ultimately goingto drive to far better results,
far more effective results, anda real strong sense of purpose
and value and contribution bythe team members and yourself.
(11:38):
And that's all anyone wouldwant.
When they get up and they goout and spend the amount of time
that they spend in theworkplace with each other, with
you, all they want is to reallyknow that they're driving to a
success line and there's apurpose and a reason, a value to
it, and even that there areconsequences or accountability
(12:03):
along the way.
But that clarity and focus andconfidence and energy just makes
it all worth it to get up andwork as hard as all of you do.
So really keep these benefitsin mind when either you're
pushing back on having goals andreally focusing and being
(12:23):
intentional and purposeful aboutthe goals that you set for the
team, for yourself, for thebusiness.
At the same time, keep it inmind what your team members need
in order to feel as if they areorganized, structured and have
purpose.
Okay, keep these benefits inmind.
(12:45):
Now let's look at why, even ifyou have goals in place, why
they may fail you, what mightget in the way of you actually
optimizing those goals to thepoint of achieving them.
The very first one that I runacross all the time with my
clients is that their goals arevery vague.
(13:06):
So let's make it simple.
Someone might say to me I wantto lose weight, I want to lose
weight, I want to get fit, Iwant to get a raise, I want to
get promoted, I want to improveemployee engagement or improve
manager effectiveness, andthat's where they leave it.
(13:29):
Therefore, my job is to thenask, question after question
after question, to make sureit's a very powerful, very
specific, very action-orientedtype of goal.
So really think about, whenyou're setting goals for
yourself or for others, that youcan't have them vague, because
if they're vague then they'realmost that dream without a goal
(13:52):
is a dream and goals without aplan are just wishes.
That's what happens when youhave vague goals.
Now, of course, a big one thatgets in the way of many people
is they don't set goals becausethey're fearful of not achieving
them.
They're fearful of failing.
(14:14):
There's even some that have afear of succeeding, and what
does that mean to me?
So really think about if youare pushing back or resisting or
you don't see the value, evenafter our conversation.
Then really think about what isit within yourself that might
(14:38):
be causing you to not want tonot only define the goals but
commit to them.
One of the reasons why manypeople fail on their goals
they're not fully committed.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I need to takethese goals from my boss and
their boss and they're going topass them down to me and I'm
(14:59):
going to look at them and I'mgoing to roll my eyes and I'm
going to put them aside and I'mnot really going to commit to
them Personally or professionalgoals.
You need not only that detailand those specifics and that
plan, but you also then need tobe committed to them.
And if you see one of your teammembers flailing around working
(15:21):
toward that goal, buying in onthat goal, pursuing that goal,
then a question you might askthem is do you have a concern
about this goal?
Do you have a concern about thework that needs to be done,
when it needs to be done, how itneeds to be done, how we're
going to measure the success ofit, so forth and so on, to
really understand and get withinthem.
(15:41):
As far as is there thisapprehension due to fear of
failure, they're not committing,so forth and so on.
All right, now I have veryambitious clients.
I have very ambitious clients,which I love, and they have big
and many aspirations andoftentimes I have to tame them
(16:03):
down.
One of those things is centeredaround the fact that they
define too many goals, andthat's another reason why they
fail at those goals in achievingthem or even pursuing them,
because they set so many thatthey just don't have the
bandwidth, the time, theresources, and it's just plain
(16:28):
exhausting.
I believe in one to three.
Three, the max of your goals,personal and professional.
The max of your goals, personaland professional.
Sure, you can have five or six,but I can guarantee you that
there's going to be one to threethat really stand out for you,
that really create a lot ofenergy for you, that is really
(16:52):
critical or high priority foryou.
And so, instead of stressingthat you have so many goals that
you need to achieve, identifythose one to three, prioritize
them into the most important,and then you can have the four,
five and six at the same time,be realistic about whether or
(17:14):
not those goals are going to beachieved or not.
And this is very relevant whenit comes to what your boss has
passed down to you.
They may pass down to you alaundry list of goals and the
conversation you need to havewith them is the reality of
being able to achieve all ofthem, and not only achieve,
(17:34):
because, at least with myclients, I don't look for them
to achieve, I look for them toexceed, and so they first need
to evaluate and look at thegoals that they have in front of
them, and then they need to dotheir own priorities.
They need to get that confirmedwith their boss as far as what
are the most critical ones, whatare the must haves, what are
(17:55):
the ones that you know, missBoss, I'm going to exceed on
these because those will be mynumber one focus.
I'll accomplish the others if Iabsolutely have to.
At the same time.
They're at risk of justsucceeding, not exceeding.
Now, I am huge on accountabilityand when it comes to any
(18:16):
performance or productivity oractivity from a team member or a
client or whomever is, youalways need a vehicle for
accountability.
When you set out to startpursuing your goals, you need to
seek out those individuals thatare going to hold you
accountable to them.
Now, of course, in a formalbusiness structure pursuing
(18:38):
those business goals you'regoing to you know it's going to
be your direct manager andwithin your organization
structure.
However, there's some goalsthat you want to seek
accountability from other peoplemaybe some mentors, some
coaches, some friends, somecolleagues, whatever the case
might be.
Friends, some colleagues,whatever the case might be.
(19:02):
But if you really want to besuccessful in achieving your
goals, you want to have someoneputting your feet to the fire
and making sure that what you'velaid out in your plan for your
goal is executed on.
And if it's not, challenge youas to why.
Try to get under your heart, soto speak, to really understand
is there something holding youback in pursuing and or
(19:24):
achieving that goal?
Just like what we talked aboutin regards to fear of failure,
you want some accountabilitypartner that will keep you
honest.
I mentioned the lack ofcommitment, which touches on
also the lack of focus I havewitnessed.
When someone has a verywell-defined goal and action
(19:49):
plan and they're excited aboutit and energized about it and
they're very optimistic about it, well, there's no need to
really provide a lot ofoversight when it comes to their
focus on that goal.
It's when things become vagueor things become confusing, or
things become fearful and thingsstart slipping through the
(20:12):
cracks when all of a sudden, thefocus goes away.
So what I'll often suggest youor anyone to do is goals change,
priorities change.
Even your business goals,priority will change over time,
within a year, and thereforewhat you should be looking at at
least regularly once a month,once a quarter is all right.
(20:36):
These are the goals I laid outfor myself.
Are they still relevant,realistic, are they still
priority?
And if not, then where do theystand in regards to you actually
spending one moment of timefocused on them?
And it's a conversation youcould have with yourself, and
then a conversation you can havewith your boss or your team
(20:57):
members, whatever the case mightbe.
But if you or your team membersare losing focus, losing energy,
feeling unmotivated towardssomething they're supposed to be
pursuing, then you might wantto start asking questions about
whether or not the priority forthem has changed.
(21:18):
It may not have changed for you, but the priority for them has
changed.
It may not have changed for you, but the priority for them has
changed.
And a situation that this willhappen is if, all of a sudden,
something else comes into theirworld, into their universe,
personally or professionally,and they get distracted, they
get reassigned, they getre-delegated and other things
prioritized over and above, orthey get overwhelmed and they
(21:43):
start losing that focus and thatattention and that energy
around a particular goal.
So you want to really have someforesight into paying attention
to your team members as they'reworking toward achieving your
goals and making sure thatyou're touching base with them
in regards to the priorities,because they may change for them
(22:06):
.
Now, of course, when it comes tothe discussion that we had
already around fear of failure,fear of success, there's a lot
of mental roadblocks that willcome up.
There's a lot of times where,all of a sudden, someone starts
doubting themselves, they startquestioning themselves, they
start dealing with impostersyndrome, they start feeling
insecure about something.
The mental roadblocks will alsocome up.
(22:29):
Maybe initially excitement,energy, motivation, priority
everything is there, priority,everything is there.
And then things to wane, andthen things seem to wane.
So again, you have to payattention.
As the manager, as the leader,you have to pay attention to
kind of be observant of thattype of behavior or shift in
(22:53):
attitude or shift inproductivity, and get it
addressed.
And then what many people willdo more so personally than
professionally, but I definitelyhave seen it professionally is
if they've set a goal andthey're not making the progress
that they want, they startgiving up on it.
(23:13):
Now.
That is so typical of NewYear's resolutions.
Diet is probably the easiestexample is if someone sets a
goal to lose a certain amount ofweight and they're going to
commit to this particular dietand fitness program and one week
(23:34):
, in two weeks, in three weeks,in four weeks in, they're not
seeing the progress that theyexpect or they want.
Then all of a sudden, that'llbe very demotivating and they
can often give up on their goals.
It's why they say the majorityof individuals give up on the
resolutions within the first,like 17 days of the new year
(24:00):
days of the new year.
If you really think about it, ifyou evaluate yourself as to why
you might have let theresolution or goal that you set
go by the wayside, you mightwant to really spend some time
considering why.
What was it that was lacking?
Was it your motivation?
Was it the plan?
Was it the accountability andthe support that you wanted?
But why, okay?
(24:21):
So really consider all thosevarious reasons as to why a goal
or a set of goals might failand really consider okay then,
what do you need to do in orderto kind of put a warranty in
place that will keep yourselfand others motivated and
(24:42):
energized around a goal that youhave to pursue and achieve, and
then you touch base and assessand readjust as you go.
I already mentioned an exampleof what I would call a bad goal
or a very vague goal, but let'sdrill into it just a little bit
(25:03):
more Again.
You might create goals that sayI want to improve customer
service, I want to increaseretention, I want to improve
employee engagement, I want todo better on sales.
All of those examples areextremely vague.
There's no meat underneath them.
(25:26):
So if I were to ask you okay,so what are you going to do to
get better sales?
And if you all of a sudden arelike, well, I haven't really
thought about it, I just needbetter sales, well, do you
really think you're going to beorganized and structured and
(25:48):
focused in a way that you'regoing to go and get those better
sales?
Let's talk through the mostpopular methodology for setting
goals, and then I have my owntake on them, and so we'll add
that little spice to theconversation as well.
The most popular methodologyout there for setting goals is
SMART, and it's an acronym andit stands for Specific S, m for
(26:14):
Measurable, a for Actionable, r,for I say realistic, others
will say relevant and T for timebound.
So again, specific, measurable,actionable, realistic and time
bound.
If you were to take that I wantto do better on sales and you
(26:37):
start asking yourself questionsOkay, I need to be more specific
.
What does being better on salesmean?
Is it being better on sales ina particular product or set of
products or services, or acombination of?
Is it better sales by a certainindustry or a certain target
market or a certain type ofcustomer?
(26:58):
Is it doing better on saleslocally, internationally?
What does it specifically meanwhen you say you want to do
better in sales and then the Mmeasurable would be okay?
So what does that look like?
What are your sales today andwhat is the goal that you want
to achieve?
What's that percentage ofimprovement?
(27:20):
What's that revenue, maybe?
What's that profit?
What's the cost?
All the measurements how manycustomers, how many customers in
a particular market, how manycustomers in a particular
industry?
Get as discreet as possiblewhen it comes to how you want to
measure your success.
Okay, so measurements.
(27:42):
Then there's actions.
What are you going to do?
What are those actions you'regoing to take in order to
realize those specifics andthose measurements?
So you come up with an actionplan right.
Then I want people to then lookat whether or not the goal that
(28:02):
they've set for themselves isrealistic.
So I use realistic because in alot of cases, my clients and,
at times in my life, myself, arenot realistic about the goals
that they're defining or thespecifics, measurements and
results that they're looking for, and so I simply ask all right,
(28:25):
let's walk through each andtell me is it realistic?
Is the goal realistic?
Are the measurements realistic?
In the example of sales, canyou achieve that percentage of
increase when you've struggledto accomplish it over the last
one to three years?
Is it realistic that you canget into this market when you've
(28:49):
never been in this marketbefore, or go after this target
customer?
That is very hard to get into,whatever the case might be.
That is very hard to get into,whatever the case might be.
But you really want to challengeyourself to make sure that
you're realistic about the goalsthat you're setting.
Now, as a coach, would I wantyou to have stretch goals and
(29:09):
have those really heightenedgoals?
Absolutely, but I don't wantyou failing.
You don't want yourself failing, you don't want team members
failing.
So the realistic test is toensure that you're creating an
opportunity for you to besuccessful, not to downsize or
deflate your goals and thestretch that you want or the
(29:32):
achievement that you want, butmore so, just be sure you're
realistic.
Examples are that I see in theworkplace are I want to be
promoted to this position like avice president position, and
right now they're a manager, andthere's like two levels in
between that and that's notnecessarily unrealistic.
(29:54):
But then the time bound comesin, the T comes in and all of a
sudden they want to do that in12, 18 months and their business
or their company.
That's not the pattern, that'snot the reality and therefore I
have to work with them to adjustthat 18 months Okay.
(30:14):
So you want to be sure you'rerealistic.
And then, of course, every oneof these goals, to make them
truly a goal, has to have a timebound, has to have an end date,
has to have an achievement date, and you could go as far as
even taking that action plan andgetting milestones in between
the start and the achievement,but they have to have due dates
(30:38):
in order for it to be really agoal.
And it's those due dates toothat really motivate people and
really get them kind of offtheir duff and start acting on
them.
Okay, now, I had mentioned thatsmart methodology of goal
setting is the most popular outthere.
(30:58):
However, I really found overthe years, one huge element
missing, and we talked about itin what the benefits, what it
takes to achieve a goal and whatcan cause you to fail on your
goal.
And I said to myself we reallyneed to consider why and that's
(31:21):
how it makes smart eagles is thewhy is actually W-H-Y in the
meaning of it, but smarty iswith just the letter Y, and that
is for you to really thinkabout.
Why do I want to pursue andachieve this goal?
Why is it important to me?
Why is it going to add value tomy life?
(31:43):
Why is it going to createconfidence and energy and
motivation and value andself-worth?
Why, why do I want to achievethis?
And so add that element to yourevaluation and your development
of your goal, and that initself, too, will give you that
(32:06):
confidence and that energy andthat focus and that clarity and
that real drive to not onlypursue it but to achieve it.
So the SMART goal methodology,spiced up with a why, makes them
smarty goals, and you can takea look in the show notes or in
any of the captions that go withthis episode, and or on our
(32:30):
website, ballofirecoachingcomforward slash podcast for this
particular episode and you'll beable to also download a
template for you to be able tocreate your smarty goals.
Let's talk about the do's ofgoal setting and why, again,
it's beneficial for you and yourteam to have goals, to
collaborate together on goalsand team members in the
(32:53):
definition of those goals and in, obviously, the pursuit and the
achievement of them.
Now, of course, there are somegoals that are passed down and
there's really no changing them.
However, they are typically inthe beginning state of being a
(33:18):
smart goal, in that they tellyou that you have a certain
sales revenue to achieve or anefficiency or a productivity
measurement to achieve, but theydon't necessarily tell you the
how, they don't necessarily tellyou the when, at least the
milestone, when and so thenthat's when you and your team
(33:41):
can come together andcollaborate.
All right, these are the goalsthat we have for the year, and
let's walk through each of themand let's really drill into
creating these into smarty goals.
So collaboration is huge.
Then what you should be doingis taking those big goals and
splicing them up into smaller,more manageable, more achievable
(34:03):
goals.
So again, let's go back to aneasy one around I'll use the
diet and then I'll even use thatpromotional goal that I
mentioned earlier.
So, the diet.
So many people fail at dietsbecause they say, okay, I want
to lose 25 pounds before the endof the year, and it's February.
(34:24):
And the next thing you knowthey say to themselves you know
what?
I've got till December toachieve this goal, so I'm going
to hold off until March, andthen it's I'm going to hold off
until August, and then it's I'mgoing to.
This is too hard, I'm going tojust hold off and work it even
(34:44):
slower until November.
And then December comes aroundand they haven't achieved their
goal.
So you want to say to yourselfall right, I do want to achieve
25 pounds by the end of the year, but for this month I want to
lose five pounds.
And then the next month comesaround I want to lose X amount
(35:07):
of weight, I want to get intothe gym X amount of days per
week, so forth and so on.
When it comes to the career, Iwant to go from manager to vice
president, and we reset theexpectation.
So I want to do that within 36months and we've defined what it
is that we need to do.
Well, 36 months seems likeforever, so that's going to
(35:30):
cause someone a lot of stress.
So I need to.
For the next 10 months beforethe end of the year, I want to
get to that next promotion frommanager to that director
position and therefore, what doI need to do?
What measurements am I going tojudge my progress on?
When do I want to do some ofthose actions?
(35:52):
So you take the big goal thatyou have for yourself,
personally or professionally,and you cull it down to
something that's more manageable.
And then, of course, what youneed to do next is you need to
be reviewing, assessing,adjusting and really being
honest about the progress thatyou're making.
And we all kind of have ourstarts and our accelerations and
(36:14):
we have our de-accelerations.
And it's not meant for you tobeat yourself up or for you to
judge yourself or to give up.
It just says to yourself okay,so I had a little bit of a slip,
I need to catch up.
How am I going to do that?
And then I'm still on track toachieve my goal, or I realized
that goal that I said,especially from a realistic
(36:38):
perspective, wasn't andtherefore I'm going to adjust
the measurement, the end result,in order to be more realistic.
So I am successful in achievingthat goal.
Okay, so you really want toreview, assess, adjust your
goals as you go.
You don't wait, you don'tdefine them now and then you
assess them at the point of whenthey're due, the final
(37:01):
deliverable.
You do it along the way, so youmake those adjustments and you
reprioritize, you add things,you remove things, so forth and
so on.
Okay, and then you need to becelebrating your wins all
throughout, big or small, big orsmall, even the little missteps
(37:22):
that you might take.
Celebrate them.
You're pursuing something,you're staying focused.
Yes, you might not haveconsidered something and
therefore that's what caused youto have as a little slip, but
at the same time, you're workingit.
So celebrate your wins.
That'll give you the energy andthe confidence and the
(37:42):
excitement to stay on point.
Now, what are some don'ts thatyou need to keep in mind?
Again, don't set unrealisticexpectations or set unrealistic
goals.
You're setting yourself up forfailure before you even get
started.
Once you've set your goals,especially for your team members
, avoid standing over them.
Avoid micromanaging.
(38:04):
Make sure that those goals andthe action plan has assignments
and projects and tasks that youare then delegating out to your
team.
That will empower them and makethem feel valued on the team in
pursuit of that goal.
You might also be responsiblefor all the goals, but your job
(38:24):
as a leader is to delegate andtrust that your people can do it
and that they're going to cometo you If they can't or they're
having challenges.
You might check in with them,but you're not standing over
them.
You're not taking the test fromthem because you could do it
better.
You're empowering them.
Next would be ensure that yourgoals are aligned to the bigger
(38:47):
goals.
Don't have something that goesoff in left field as far as what
it is you or your team aregoing to be pursuing.
Everything should be aligned tothe overall.
Maybe it's a business function,maybe it's the company as a
whole, maybe it's the vision ofthe organization.
Whatever the case might be, thegoals that you have that were
(39:10):
passed down to you and you'vedefined for yourself and your
team should all align, drivingtoward the overall goals being
achieved, and then avoid settingtoo many of them, even for your
team.
Make sure that the individualmight be defining their own
goals.
They're going to add the goalsthat you have for them.
(39:32):
They're going to add the goalsthe company has for you, for
them, and make sure that you andthey are not biting off more
than you can chew, becausethat'll just create more
frustration and morediscouragement for both your
team members and yourself.
Try to avoid the pitfalls thatcan happen along the way.
(39:54):
For instance, I'm often told orgiven feedback from employees
about their managers that theyreally weren't clear in regards
to what the goals are or theexpectations are, or they
weren't told why am I working onthis?
Why is this important?
Why or how is this going to addvalue to the team, to the
(40:17):
organization?
Add value to the team, to theorganization?
So you, as a leader, need toensure that you're communicating
with them very specifically,very clearly and very
consistently, so don't fall intothe pitfall of your team
walking around confused andfrustrated and discouraged
because you're not reallyproviding them what it is that
they need in order to besuccessful or even to stay
(40:40):
focused and to feel energized tomove forward.
Now I mentioned that you can goto ballofirecoachingcom forward
slash podcast, find this episode, and in the show notes will be
a free download of a templateyou can use to create your
(41:01):
smarty goals for yourself andeven for your team members, so
you can make a bunch of copies,give them to your team members
and allow them to start craftingtheir smarty goals.
There's also other tools, appsand technology that can be used
in order to not only set yourgoals but also then to track
them along the way Things likeAsana, trello, okr, so forth and
(41:26):
so on.
I'll leave that up to you to goand research those.
But there are definitely appsand other technologies and even
websites that you can use inorder to more automate not only
the goal setting but thetracking and the updating.
And then I even suggest toclients to put a reflection
(41:46):
practice in place.
It's very similar to theassessing of the goals, the
progress, the results, but thereflection is inward and outward
, it's not just black and white,as far as all right.
So here are the measurements wehad for this goal, and here we
are, in regards to progress andor achievement, but more so,
(42:09):
your internal take on how you'vecontributed to it, what
challenges have come up, whatmental roadblocks did you
experience?
What mental roadblocks did youexperience?
So a reflection practice can bevery, very valuable to your
goal pursuit and achievement.
So consider putting areflection practice in place,
(42:34):
along with using tools andtemplates and other things that
will really help your goalsetting, but, more so, your
pursuit and achievement, to bethat much more productive,
valuable and results oriented.
Now, as we wrap up, just keep inmind setting goals is not about
checking a box.
It's about creating a roadmapfor you and your people that
inspires action, builds momentumand really drives measurable
(42:59):
results.
Remember, goals without a veryclear why are just wishes and,
as a leader, your job is toinspire your team with purpose
so they rally around it andreally drive toward achieving it
.
Some key takeaways I want youto think about is make your
goals smart.
Add that why so you have smartygoals, and avoid the common
(43:23):
pitfalls of vague objectives,unrealistic timelines or setting
too many priorities at once.
A next step I would want for youis to take one of the goals
that you have for yourselfbeyond your business goals, the
ones that are passed down to you, but maybe your leadership
development goals, maybe apersonal goal and really work it
(43:45):
into the SMART methodology andadd that why to make them SMARTy
, and then share this episodewith your team members so they
can also get their head aroundwhat it takes to really have a
sticky, action-oriented,results-driven set of goals for
themselves.
So again, go toballoffirecoachingcom forward
(44:08):
slash podcast to find thisepisode and find the link to
your free Smarty Goal templateright there in the notes.
And also be sure to follow andsubscribe to our show on YouTube
, apple Spotify and on ball offire coachingcom forward slash
(44:28):
podcast.
Let's keep the momentum goingand I'll see you next time for
another episode of shedding thecorporate bitch.
Bye.
Speaker 2 (44:37):
Thank you for tuning into today's episode of Shedding
the Corporate Bitch.
Every journey taken together isanother step towards unleashing
the powerhouse leader withinyou.
Don't miss any of our weeklyepisodes.
Subscribe to our podcast onApple Podcasts, spotify or
wherever you love to listen.
And, for those who thrive onvisual content, catch us on our
Shedding the Bitch YouTubechannel.
Want to dive deeper withBernadette on becoming a
(44:58):
powerhouse leader?
Visit balloffirecoachingcom tolearn more about how she helps
professionals, hr executives andteam leaders elevate overall
team performance.
You've been listening toShedding the Corporate Bitch
with Bernadette Boas.
Until next time, keep shedding,keep growing and keep leading.
Have you ever set a goal for your team only to find
it fizzle out before the quarterends?
Maybe you've been handed downsome very vague objectives from
up above, leaving you and yourteam frustrated, confused and
spinning your wheels.
Welcome to Shedding theCorporate Pitch, where we cut
through the noise and reallyfocus on what drives results.
(00:22):
I'm Bernadette Bowes, executivecoach, and I am dedicated to
helping corporate professionalsjust like you to lead with
clarity, purpose and impact.
In today's episode, we're divinginto the art of effective goal
setting For a team.
Goals really provide cleardirection, motivate team members
to work together and enhancecollaboration and enables
(00:46):
measurable progress, ultimatelyleading to better overall
results and a stronger sense ofpurpose within the team.
Without them, teams can reallylack focus and struggle to
achieve optimal performance.
So we're going to discuss whymost goals fail and how to craft
not only powerful, smart goals,but really powerhouse smarty
(01:10):
goals, and what are the key do'sand don'ts to avoid the
pitfalls that derail even thebest intentions.
And, lastly, what tools can yoube using in order to enhance
your goal setting and execution?
Whether you're managing a team,a project or your own career
trajectory, this episode willgive you actionable strategies
(01:32):
to set goals that inspire actionand deliver results.
Let's dive in.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
Welcome to Shedding the Corporate Bitch, the podcast
that transforms today'smanagers into tomorrow's
powerhouse leaders.
Your host, bernadette Boas,executive coach and author,
brings you into a world wherethe corporate grind meets
personal growth and success ineach and every episode.
With more than 25 years incorporate trenches, bernadette's
own journey from beingdismissed as a tyrant boss to
(01:58):
becoming a sought-afterleadership coach and speaker
illustrates the very essence oftransformation that she now
inspires in others with her tips, strategies and stories.
So if you're ready to shed thebitches of fear and insecurity,
ditch the imposter syndrome andstep into the role of the
powerhouse leader you were bornto be, this podcast is for you.
Let's do this.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
I have to admit, I have been a very intentional
goal setter for a very long time, making sure that I'm thinking
through, intentionally andpurposely, what it is I want to
pursue and achieve and why thatis, and getting it down on paper
in a very specific, clear andmeasurable way in order for me
(02:42):
to really know that each andevery day when I get up, I know
what I need to be doing.
And that's what I want for you,for you and your team, to
really understand.
Why is it you're getting upeach and every morning to go to
work, work your little tail offand to achieve your goals,
achieve a bonus, achieve apromotion, whatever the case
(03:06):
might be.
But I want you to keep in mindsome very common sayings that
are out there that when youreally think about it and you
consider your focus on goalsetting and execution and
achievement, they very wellmight be true, the first one
being dreams without goals arejust dreams.
Think about that.
Dreams without goals are justdreams.
(03:29):
Without a plan, without thought, without measurements.
They are just wishes.
So we have dreams without goalsare just dreams.
Nice to haves, wannabes, hope,those kind of things.
(03:52):
And goals without a plan arejust wishes.
Yes, you might define a goal,but if you don't actually put
together a plan that, once againagain, is actionable,
measurable, time-bound, etcetera, then they're just wishes
that you would want to achieve.
So think about it.
(04:12):
There's been times over theyears where I have stated to
myself okay, I want to get aparticular client, I want to
lose weight, I want to completemini or sprint triathlons, and
yet I really never put a plan inplace in order to achieve those
(04:32):
things.
I have a number of clients whowill do the same at the
beginning of the year, lay outexactly what they want to do
from a goal perspective, butthen it's too general and too
vague and therefore there'sreally nothing that they're
focused on to start executing,against measuring and achieving,
(04:53):
and then they wonder why theyfall flat or even they give up
on them or fail on them.
So what we want to be sure thatwe all are doing is being very
intentional, very thoughtfulabout the planning, about the
defining of your goals.
(05:13):
So they are a tool that givesyou energy and focus and
excitement about what it isyou're looking to pursue and
achieve.
Now let's talk about thebenefits of goals.
There are some experts out therethat basically will state that
you don't need to have goals tobe successful, and that is one's
(05:37):
opinion.
I have found over the years,not only in the work that I've
done over the last 16 years withcorporate professionals, but
even through my own personal andprofessional lifetime that when
I had a well-defined goal and aplan to support it, and then I
also had the accountability inplace, there was nothing that
(06:00):
was going to stop me fromachieving that goal.
When I lacked any of thoseelements and I was relying on oh
well, I have it in my head, Idon't need to put it on a piece
of paper Well then I'm juststarting to grab at things, I'm
starting to throw things at thewall to see what sticks, and
(06:23):
eventually I find myself veryfrustrated, very overworked,
very empty around what it isthat I'm trying to achieve, and
eventually and most of the timeI don't achieve it, I pretty
much walk away from it and kindof give up on it.
So we want to be sure that youreally understand the benefits
(06:45):
of goal setting for yourself andfor your team.
So then you do put into placethe tools that are proven to
help you be far more successfulthan maybe you have in the past
and or minimize the stress andminimize the risk of you not
achieving what it is you want inyour work and life.
So some of the benefits that wecan talk through are they do
(07:09):
provide clear direction, and Iknow you probably have heard
hundreds of times the analogy ofif you were to take a road trip
from Atlanta to California andyour goal is to reach California
in a certain number of days, soforth and so on.
Would you really get in the carwithout a roadmap of how to get
(07:34):
to California, without reallylooking at ways to determine if
there's any road closures,bridge closures, situations
going on that are going to stallyou or prevent you from taking
that path that you've laid out?
Would you really get in the carbeforehand without gas?
Would you get in the carwithout sufficient monies or
(07:57):
credit cards or some means ofbeing able to buy food, lodging,
so forth and so on?
No, if you have a goal of goingfrom Atlanta to California,
you're most likely going to sitdown and really lay out what it
is you need, how you're going toget there, what are the
roadblocks and the challengesand the objections that you're
(08:18):
going to get along the way, soforth and so on.
So that's why goals reallyprovide literally, in some cases
, very clear direction.
All right, and then, of course,if you've ever spoken to your
team members and ask them aboutwhat it is that would help them
(08:39):
be more effective, moreefficient, more energized and
excited about the work that theydo, most likely what you'll
find because I have found itover the last 16 years of
talking to hundreds and hundredsof employees and their managers
they will tell you that theyjust need more clarity, more
direction, more understanding ofwhy they're working on
(09:04):
something and, overall, morefeedback regarding the work and
the goals that have been putinto place and, most likely,
passed down to them.
So it also provides your teammembers, which is what you
really, as a leader, should befocused on.
It provides your team membersthat confidence, that clarity,
(09:25):
that focus, that certainty andeven trust in you that you have
a plan, you know what it is thatyou're all trying to achieve
and you're going to besupportive and successful in
getting them there.
Not to say that there won't beups and downs along the way, but
(09:47):
at the same time, along withyour plan, where you make
adjustments and take off things,add things, it builds that
confidence and trust that youwill get them to the end point,
to the success line, and, ofcourse, that motivation creates
the energy in them, theconfidence, the excitement.
(10:09):
At the same time, it reallyensures that there's keen
collaboration amongst you andthe team members and amongst
themselves.
So you meet with the team, youprovide the overview of the
goals, maybe a detailed drilldown of how you're going to
measure what actions need to betaken, when things need to be
(10:31):
done, who's going to be assignedwhat, and then that helps them
together to collaborate todiscuss any issues or challenges
or ideas or options as they goto execute and achieve a task, a
project, an overall goal.
It really enhancescollaboration and, of course,
(10:52):
you're going to have a tool thatyou can then use to measure the
progress that you and the teamare making.
Without measurements, you'releft to kind of flail as far as,
am I going to meet thatdeadline?
Am I going to get the resultsthat we're looking for?
When you have everyone lined uparound goals, around a plan,
(11:15):
around a timeline, then not onlyare they motivated and
energized and excited andthey're collaborating better and
they're performing andproducing better.
Well, that's ultimately goingto drive to far better results,
far more effective results, anda real strong sense of purpose
and value and contribution bythe team members and yourself.
(11:38):
And that's all anyone wouldwant.
When they get up and they goout and spend the amount of time
that they spend in theworkplace with each other, with
you, all they want is to reallyknow that they're driving to a
success line and there's apurpose and a reason, a value to
it, and even that there areconsequences or accountability
(12:03):
along the way.
But that clarity and focus andconfidence and energy just makes
it all worth it to get up andwork as hard as all of you do.
So really keep these benefitsin mind when either you're
pushing back on having goals andreally focusing and being
(12:23):
intentional and purposeful aboutthe goals that you set for the
team, for yourself, for thebusiness.
At the same time, keep it inmind what your team members need
in order to feel as if they areorganized, structured and have
purpose.
Okay, keep these benefits inmind.
(12:45):
Now let's look at why, even ifyou have goals in place, why
they may fail you, what mightget in the way of you actually
optimizing those goals to thepoint of achieving them.
The very first one that I runacross all the time with my
clients is that their goals arevery vague.
(13:06):
So let's make it simple.
Someone might say to me I wantto lose weight, I want to lose
weight, I want to get fit, Iwant to get a raise, I want to
get promoted, I want to improveemployee engagement or improve
manager effectiveness, andthat's where they leave it.
(13:29):
Therefore, my job is to thenask, question after question
after question, to make sureit's a very powerful, very
specific, very action-orientedtype of goal.
So really think about, whenyou're setting goals for
yourself or for others, that youcan't have them vague, because
if they're vague then they'realmost that dream without a goal
(13:52):
is a dream and goals without aplan are just wishes.
That's what happens when youhave vague goals.
Now, of course, a big one thatgets in the way of many people
is they don't set goals becausethey're fearful of not achieving
them.
They're fearful of failing.
(14:14):
There's even some that have afear of succeeding, and what
does that mean to me?
So really think about if youare pushing back or resisting or
you don't see the value, evenafter our conversation.
Then really think about what isit within yourself that might
(14:38):
be causing you to not want tonot only define the goals but
commit to them.
One of the reasons why manypeople fail on their goals
they're not fully committed.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I need to takethese goals from my boss and
their boss and they're going topass them down to me and I'm
(14:59):
going to look at them and I'mgoing to roll my eyes and I'm
going to put them aside and I'mnot really going to commit to
them Personally or professionalgoals.
You need not only that detailand those specifics and that
plan, but you also then need tobe committed to them.
And if you see one of your teammembers flailing around working
(15:21):
toward that goal, buying in onthat goal, pursuing that goal,
then a question you might askthem is do you have a concern
about this goal?
Do you have a concern about thework that needs to be done,
when it needs to be done, how itneeds to be done, how we're
going to measure the success ofit, so forth and so on, to
really understand and get withinthem.
(15:41):
As far as is there thisapprehension due to fear of
failure, they're not committing,so forth and so on.
All right, now I have veryambitious clients.
I have very ambitious clients,which I love, and they have big
and many aspirations andoftentimes I have to tame them
(16:03):
down.
One of those things is centeredaround the fact that they
define too many goals, andthat's another reason why they
fail at those goals in achievingthem or even pursuing them,
because they set so many thatthey just don't have the
bandwidth, the time, theresources, and it's just plain
(16:28):
exhausting.
I believe in one to three.
Three, the max of your goals,personal and professional.
The max of your goals, personaland professional.
Sure, you can have five or six,but I can guarantee you that
there's going to be one to threethat really stand out for you,
that really create a lot ofenergy for you, that is really
(16:52):
critical or high priority foryou.
And so, instead of stressingthat you have so many goals that
you need to achieve, identifythose one to three, prioritize
them into the most important,and then you can have the four,
five and six at the same time,be realistic about whether or
(17:14):
not those goals are going to beachieved or not.
And this is very relevant whenit comes to what your boss has
passed down to you.
They may pass down to you alaundry list of goals and the
conversation you need to havewith them is the reality of
being able to achieve all ofthem, and not only achieve,
(17:34):
because, at least with myclients, I don't look for them
to achieve, I look for them toexceed, and so they first need
to evaluate and look at thegoals that they have in front of
them, and then they need to dotheir own priorities.
They need to get that confirmedwith their boss as far as what
are the most critical ones, whatare the must haves, what are
(17:55):
the ones that you know, missBoss, I'm going to exceed on
these because those will be mynumber one focus.
I'll accomplish the others if Iabsolutely have to.
At the same time.
They're at risk of justsucceeding, not exceeding.
Now, I am huge on accountabilityand when it comes to any
(18:16):
performance or productivity oractivity from a team member or a
client or whomever is, youalways need a vehicle for
accountability.
When you set out to startpursuing your goals, you need to
seek out those individuals thatare going to hold you
accountable to them.
Now, of course, in a formalbusiness structure pursuing
(18:38):
those business goals you'regoing to you know it's going to
be your direct manager andwithin your organization
structure.
However, there's some goalsthat you want to seek
accountability from other peoplemaybe some mentors, some
coaches, some friends, somecolleagues, whatever the case
might be.
Friends, some colleagues,whatever the case might be.
(19:02):
But if you really want to besuccessful in achieving your
goals, you want to have someoneputting your feet to the fire
and making sure that what you'velaid out in your plan for your
goal is executed on.
And if it's not, challenge youas to why.
Try to get under your heart, soto speak, to really understand
is there something holding youback in pursuing and or
(19:24):
achieving that goal?
Just like what we talked aboutin regards to fear of failure,
you want some accountabilitypartner that will keep you
honest.
I mentioned the lack ofcommitment, which touches on
also the lack of focus I havewitnessed.
When someone has a verywell-defined goal and action
(19:49):
plan and they're excited aboutit and energized about it and
they're very optimistic about it, well, there's no need to
really provide a lot ofoversight when it comes to their
focus on that goal.
It's when things become vagueor things become confusing, or
things become fearful and thingsstart slipping through the
(20:12):
cracks when all of a sudden, thefocus goes away.
So what I'll often suggest youor anyone to do is goals change,
priorities change.
Even your business goals,priority will change over time,
within a year, and thereforewhat you should be looking at at
least regularly once a month,once a quarter is all right.
(20:36):
These are the goals I laid outfor myself.
Are they still relevant,realistic, are they still
priority?
And if not, then where do theystand in regards to you actually
spending one moment of timefocused on them?
And it's a conversation youcould have with yourself, and
then a conversation you can havewith your boss or your team
(20:57):
members, whatever the case mightbe.
But if you or your team membersare losing focus, losing energy,
feeling unmotivated towardssomething they're supposed to be
pursuing, then you might wantto start asking questions about
whether or not the priority forthem has changed.
(21:18):
It may not have changed for you, but the priority for them has
changed.
It may not have changed for you, but the priority for them has
changed.
And a situation that this willhappen is if, all of a sudden,
something else comes into theirworld, into their universe,
personally or professionally,and they get distracted, they
get reassigned, they getre-delegated and other things
prioritized over and above, orthey get overwhelmed and they
(21:43):
start losing that focus and thatattention and that energy
around a particular goal.
So you want to really have someforesight into paying attention
to your team members as they'reworking toward achieving your
goals and making sure thatyou're touching base with them
in regards to the priorities,because they may change for them
(22:06):
.
Now, of course, when it comes tothe discussion that we had
already around fear of failure,fear of success, there's a lot
of mental roadblocks that willcome up.
There's a lot of times where,all of a sudden, someone starts
doubting themselves, they startquestioning themselves, they
start dealing with impostersyndrome, they start feeling
insecure about something.
The mental roadblocks will alsocome up.
(22:29):
Maybe initially excitement,energy, motivation, priority
everything is there, priority,everything is there.
And then things to wane, andthen things seem to wane.
So again, you have to payattention.
As the manager, as the leader,you have to pay attention to
kind of be observant of thattype of behavior or shift in
(22:53):
attitude or shift inproductivity, and get it
addressed.
And then what many people willdo more so personally than
professionally, but I definitelyhave seen it professionally is
if they've set a goal andthey're not making the progress
that they want, they startgiving up on it.
(23:13):
Now.
That is so typical of NewYear's resolutions.
Diet is probably the easiestexample is if someone sets a
goal to lose a certain amount ofweight and they're going to
commit to this particular dietand fitness program and one week
(23:34):
, in two weeks, in three weeks,in four weeks in, they're not
seeing the progress that theyexpect or they want.
Then all of a sudden, that'llbe very demotivating and they
can often give up on their goals.
It's why they say the majorityof individuals give up on the
resolutions within the first,like 17 days of the new year
(24:00):
days of the new year.
If you really think about it, ifyou evaluate yourself as to why
you might have let theresolution or goal that you set
go by the wayside, you mightwant to really spend some time
considering why.
What was it that was lacking?
Was it your motivation?
Was it the plan?
Was it the accountability andthe support that you wanted?
But why, okay?
(24:21):
So really consider all thosevarious reasons as to why a goal
or a set of goals might failand really consider okay then,
what do you need to do in orderto kind of put a warranty in
place that will keep yourselfand others motivated and
(24:42):
energized around a goal that youhave to pursue and achieve, and
then you touch base and assessand readjust as you go.
I already mentioned an exampleof what I would call a bad goal
or a very vague goal, but let'sdrill into it just a little bit
(25:03):
more Again.
You might create goals that sayI want to improve customer
service, I want to increaseretention, I want to improve
employee engagement, I want todo better on sales.
All of those examples areextremely vague.
There's no meat underneath them.
(25:26):
So if I were to ask you okay,so what are you going to do to
get better sales?
And if you all of a sudden arelike, well, I haven't really
thought about it, I just needbetter sales, well, do you
really think you're going to beorganized and structured and
(25:48):
focused in a way that you'regoing to go and get those better
sales?
Let's talk through the mostpopular methodology for setting
goals, and then I have my owntake on them, and so we'll add
that little spice to theconversation as well.
The most popular methodologyout there for setting goals is
SMART, and it's an acronym andit stands for Specific S, m for
(26:14):
Measurable, a for Actionable, r,for I say realistic, others
will say relevant and T for timebound.
So again, specific, measurable,actionable, realistic and time
bound.
If you were to take that I wantto do better on sales and you
(26:37):
start asking yourself questionsOkay, I need to be more specific
.
What does being better on salesmean?
Is it being better on sales ina particular product or set of
products or services, or acombination of?
Is it better sales by a certainindustry or a certain target
market or a certain type ofcustomer?
(26:58):
Is it doing better on saleslocally, internationally?
What does it specifically meanwhen you say you want to do
better in sales and then the Mmeasurable would be okay?
So what does that look like?
What are your sales today andwhat is the goal that you want
to achieve?
What's that percentage ofimprovement?
(27:20):
What's that revenue, maybe?
What's that profit?
What's the cost?
All the measurements how manycustomers, how many customers in
a particular market, how manycustomers in a particular
industry?
Get as discreet as possiblewhen it comes to how you want to
measure your success.
Okay, so measurements.
(27:42):
Then there's actions.
What are you going to do?
What are those actions you'regoing to take in order to
realize those specifics andthose measurements?
So you come up with an actionplan right.
Then I want people to then lookat whether or not the goal that
(28:02):
they've set for themselves isrealistic.
So I use realistic because in alot of cases, my clients and,
at times in my life, myself, arenot realistic about the goals
that they're defining or thespecifics, measurements and
results that they're looking for, and so I simply ask all right,
(28:25):
let's walk through each andtell me is it realistic?
Is the goal realistic?
Are the measurements realistic?
In the example of sales, canyou achieve that percentage of
increase when you've struggledto accomplish it over the last
one to three years?
Is it realistic that you canget into this market when you've
(28:49):
never been in this marketbefore, or go after this target
customer?
That is very hard to get into,whatever the case might be.
That is very hard to get into,whatever the case might be.
But you really want to challengeyourself to make sure that
you're realistic about the goalsthat you're setting.
Now, as a coach, would I wantyou to have stretch goals and
(29:09):
have those really heightenedgoals?
Absolutely, but I don't wantyou failing.
You don't want yourself failing, you don't want team members
failing.
So the realistic test is toensure that you're creating an
opportunity for you to besuccessful, not to downsize or
deflate your goals and thestretch that you want or the
(29:32):
achievement that you want, butmore so, just be sure you're
realistic.
Examples are that I see in theworkplace are I want to be
promoted to this position like avice president position, and
right now they're a manager, andthere's like two levels in
between that and that's notnecessarily unrealistic.
(29:54):
But then the time bound comesin, the T comes in and all of a
sudden they want to do that in12, 18 months and their business
or their company.
That's not the pattern, that'snot the reality and therefore I
have to work with them to adjustthat 18 months Okay.
(30:14):
So you want to be sure you'rerealistic.
And then, of course, every oneof these goals, to make them
truly a goal, has to have a timebound, has to have an end date,
has to have an achievement date, and you could go as far as
even taking that action plan andgetting milestones in between
the start and the achievement,but they have to have due dates
(30:38):
in order for it to be really agoal.
And it's those due dates toothat really motivate people and
really get them kind of offtheir duff and start acting on
them.
Okay, now, I had mentioned thatsmart methodology of goal
setting is the most popular outthere.
(30:58):
However, I really found overthe years, one huge element
missing, and we talked about itin what the benefits, what it
takes to achieve a goal and whatcan cause you to fail on your
goal.
And I said to myself we reallyneed to consider why and that's
(31:21):
how it makes smart eagles is thewhy is actually W-H-Y in the
meaning of it, but smarty iswith just the letter Y, and that
is for you to really thinkabout.
Why do I want to pursue andachieve this goal?
Why is it important to me?
Why is it going to add value tomy life?
(31:43):
Why is it going to createconfidence and energy and
motivation and value andself-worth?
Why, why do I want to achievethis?
And so add that element to yourevaluation and your development
of your goal, and that initself, too, will give you that
(32:06):
confidence and that energy andthat focus and that clarity and
that real drive to not onlypursue it but to achieve it.
So the SMART goal methodology,spiced up with a why, makes them
smarty goals, and you can takea look in the show notes or in
any of the captions that go withthis episode, and or on our
(32:30):
website, ballofirecoachingcomforward slash podcast for this
particular episode and you'll beable to also download a
template for you to be able tocreate your smarty goals.
Let's talk about the do's ofgoal setting and why, again,
it's beneficial for you and yourteam to have goals, to
collaborate together on goalsand team members in the
(32:53):
definition of those goals and in, obviously, the pursuit and the
achievement of them.
Now, of course, there are somegoals that are passed down and
there's really no changing them.
However, they are typically inthe beginning state of being a
(33:18):
smart goal, in that they tellyou that you have a certain
sales revenue to achieve or anefficiency or a productivity
measurement to achieve, but theydon't necessarily tell you the
how, they don't necessarily tellyou the when, at least the
milestone, when and so thenthat's when you and your team
(33:41):
can come together andcollaborate.
All right, these are the goalsthat we have for the year, and
let's walk through each of themand let's really drill into
creating these into smarty goals.
So collaboration is huge.
Then what you should be doingis taking those big goals and
splicing them up into smaller,more manageable, more achievable
(34:03):
goals.
So again, let's go back to aneasy one around I'll use the
diet and then I'll even use thatpromotional goal that I
mentioned earlier.
So, the diet.
So many people fail at dietsbecause they say, okay, I want
to lose 25 pounds before the endof the year, and it's February.
(34:24):
And the next thing you knowthey say to themselves you know
what?
I've got till December toachieve this goal, so I'm going
to hold off until March, andthen it's I'm going to hold off
until August, and then it's I'mgoing to.
This is too hard, I'm going tojust hold off and work it even
(34:44):
slower until November.
And then December comes aroundand they haven't achieved their
goal.
So you want to say to yourselfall right, I do want to achieve
25 pounds by the end of the year, but for this month I want to
lose five pounds.
And then the next month comesaround I want to lose X amount
(35:07):
of weight, I want to get intothe gym X amount of days per
week, so forth and so on.
When it comes to the career, Iwant to go from manager to vice
president, and we reset theexpectation.
So I want to do that within 36months and we've defined what it
is that we need to do.
Well, 36 months seems likeforever, so that's going to
(35:30):
cause someone a lot of stress.
So I need to.
For the next 10 months beforethe end of the year, I want to
get to that next promotion frommanager to that director
position and therefore, what doI need to do?
What measurements am I going tojudge my progress on?
When do I want to do some ofthose actions?
(35:52):
So you take the big goal thatyou have for yourself,
personally or professionally,and you cull it down to
something that's more manageable.
And then, of course, what youneed to do next is you need to
be reviewing, assessing,adjusting and really being
honest about the progress thatyou're making.
And we all kind of have ourstarts and our accelerations and
(36:14):
we have our de-accelerations.
And it's not meant for you tobeat yourself up or for you to
judge yourself or to give up.
It just says to yourself okay,so I had a little bit of a slip,
I need to catch up.
How am I going to do that?
And then I'm still on track toachieve my goal, or I realized
that goal that I said,especially from a realistic
(36:38):
perspective, wasn't andtherefore I'm going to adjust
the measurement, the end result,in order to be more realistic.
So I am successful in achievingthat goal.
Okay, so you really want toreview, assess, adjust your
goals as you go.
You don't wait, you don'tdefine them now and then you
assess them at the point of whenthey're due, the final
(37:01):
deliverable.
You do it along the way, so youmake those adjustments and you
reprioritize, you add things,you remove things, so forth and
so on.
Okay, and then you need to becelebrating your wins all
throughout, big or small, big orsmall, even the little missteps
(37:22):
that you might take.
Celebrate them.
You're pursuing something,you're staying focused.
Yes, you might not haveconsidered something and
therefore that's what caused youto have as a little slip, but
at the same time, you're workingit.
So celebrate your wins.
That'll give you the energy andthe confidence and the
(37:42):
excitement to stay on point.
Now, what are some don'ts thatyou need to keep in mind?
Again, don't set unrealisticexpectations or set unrealistic
goals.
You're setting yourself up forfailure before you even get
started.
Once you've set your goals,especially for your team members
, avoid standing over them.
Avoid micromanaging.
(38:04):
Make sure that those goals andthe action plan has assignments
and projects and tasks that youare then delegating out to your
team.
That will empower them and makethem feel valued on the team in
pursuit of that goal.
You might also be responsiblefor all the goals, but your job
(38:24):
as a leader is to delegate andtrust that your people can do it
and that they're going to cometo you If they can't or they're
having challenges.
You might check in with them,but you're not standing over
them.
You're not taking the test fromthem because you could do it
better.
You're empowering them.
Next would be ensure that yourgoals are aligned to the bigger
(38:47):
goals.
Don't have something that goesoff in left field as far as what
it is you or your team aregoing to be pursuing.
Everything should be aligned tothe overall.
Maybe it's a business function,maybe it's the company as a
whole, maybe it's the vision ofthe organization.
Whatever the case might be, thegoals that you have that were
(39:10):
passed down to you and you'vedefined for yourself and your
team should all align, drivingtoward the overall goals being
achieved, and then avoid settingtoo many of them, even for your
team.
Make sure that the individualmight be defining their own
goals.
They're going to add the goalsthat you have for them.
(39:32):
They're going to add the goalsthe company has for you, for
them, and make sure that you andthey are not biting off more
than you can chew, becausethat'll just create more
frustration and morediscouragement for both your
team members and yourself.
Try to avoid the pitfalls thatcan happen along the way.
(39:54):
For instance, I'm often told orgiven feedback from employees
about their managers that theyreally weren't clear in regards
to what the goals are or theexpectations are, or they
weren't told why am I working onthis?
Why is this important?
Why or how is this going to addvalue to the team, to the
(40:17):
organization?
Add value to the team, to theorganization?
So you, as a leader, need toensure that you're communicating
with them very specifically,very clearly and very
consistently, so don't fall intothe pitfall of your team
walking around confused andfrustrated and discouraged
because you're not reallyproviding them what it is that
they need in order to besuccessful or even to stay
(40:40):
focused and to feel energized tomove forward.
Now I mentioned that you can goto ballofirecoachingcom forward
slash podcast, find this episode, and in the show notes will be
a free download of a templateyou can use to create your
(41:01):
smarty goals for yourself andeven for your team members, so
you can make a bunch of copies,give them to your team members
and allow them to start craftingtheir smarty goals.
There's also other tools, appsand technology that can be used
in order to not only set yourgoals but also then to track
them along the way Things likeAsana, trello, okr, so forth and
(41:26):
so on.
I'll leave that up to you to goand research those.
But there are definitely appsand other technologies and even
websites that you can use inorder to more automate not only
the goal setting but thetracking and the updating.
And then I even suggest toclients to put a reflection
(41:46):
practice in place.
It's very similar to theassessing of the goals, the
progress, the results, but thereflection is inward and outward
, it's not just black and white,as far as all right.
So here are the measurements wehad for this goal, and here we
are, in regards to progress andor achievement, but more so,
(42:09):
your internal take on how you'vecontributed to it, what
challenges have come up, whatmental roadblocks did you
experience?
What mental roadblocks did youexperience?
So a reflection practice can bevery, very valuable to your
goal pursuit and achievement.
So consider putting areflection practice in place,
(42:34):
along with using tools andtemplates and other things that
will really help your goalsetting, but, more so, your
pursuit and achievement, to bethat much more productive,
valuable and results oriented.
Now, as we wrap up, just keep inmind setting goals is not about
checking a box.
It's about creating a roadmapfor you and your people that
inspires action, builds momentumand really drives measurable
(42:59):
results.
Remember, goals without a veryclear why are just wishes and,
as a leader, your job is toinspire your team with purpose
so they rally around it andreally drive toward achieving it
.
Some key takeaways I want youto think about is make your
goals smart.
Add that why so you have smartygoals, and avoid the common
(43:23):
pitfalls of vague objectives,unrealistic timelines or setting
too many priorities at once.
A next step I would want for youis to take one of the goals
that you have for yourselfbeyond your business goals, the
ones that are passed down to you, but maybe your leadership
development goals, maybe apersonal goal and really work it
(43:45):
into the SMART methodology andadd that why to make them SMARTy
, and then share this episodewith your team members so they
can also get their head aroundwhat it takes to really have a
sticky, action-oriented,results-driven set of goals for
themselves.
So again, go toballoffirecoachingcom forward
(44:08):
slash podcast to find thisepisode and find the link to
your free Smarty Goal templateright there in the notes.
And also be sure to follow andsubscribe to our show on YouTube
, apple Spotify and on ball offire coachingcom forward slash
(44:28):
podcast.
Let's keep the momentum goingand I'll see you next time for
another episode of shedding thecorporate bitch.
Bye.
Speaker 2 (44:37):
Thank you for tuning into today's episode of Shedding
the Corporate Bitch.
Every journey taken together isanother step towards unleashing
the powerhouse leader withinyou.
Don't miss any of our weeklyepisodes.
Subscribe to our podcast onApple Podcasts, spotify or
wherever you love to listen.
And, for those who thrive onvisual content, catch us on our
Shedding the Bitch YouTubechannel.
Want to dive deeper withBernadette on becoming a
(44:58):
powerhouse leader?
Visit balloffirecoachingcom tolearn more about how she helps
professionals, hr executives andteam leaders elevate overall
team performance.
You've been listening toShedding the Corporate Bitch
with Bernadette Boas.
Until next time, keep shedding,keep growing and keep leading.
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