Achieving the goals you define for your business can be tricky. However, by using the strategies below you can maximize the chances that you will successfully hit your targets each and every time.
Consider your overall mission
Now, you may well expect this post to be concerned about how to set effective specific goals, and indeed we do address this in the section below. However, before you even consider any individual goals you must think about the overall mission or end goal.
Unfortunately, this can be anything but simple to do, as you may not always be aware of where the road may ultimately lead your business. The good news is that it is now possible to get software that includes Frameworks of strategy and ways of tracking your progress against this. Something that can help you define both where your business is going and the most efficient way of getting there!
Setting smart goals
Also, when you are considering the smaller targets that will help you achieve your overall mission, using the SMART approach can be very helpful. The SMART system is a way of setting goals that make us much more likely to achieve them. This is because each letter of the word SMART stands for a different aspect of effective goal setting –
- S is for specific. That is general goals tend to be much harder to reach than specific ones.
- M is for measuring, which refers to how you must define the boundaries of success of any business goal you set.
- A is for achievable, this means you need to set a target that your business can achieve, for example, if you are running a startup out of your garage, having your product used in every home in America is unlikely to be achievable.
- R is relevant, this means you need to choose a goal that is meaningful for your business’s journey. Why bother to be the first car dealership on the moon if this won’t bring any tangible benefits such as profits?
- Lastly, T is for time-bound, that is you need to set a time limit for any goals you set. After all, sometimes deadlines are the only thing that encourages us to complete the goals we have set.
Try eating the frog first
Last, of all, have you ever heard yourself say – I just didn’t have time to do that? Well, then time management approaches may be helpful. One such approach is called ‘eat the frog’ and while it might not sound too appetizing, eating the frog can be a very effective way of doing things.
The frog, in this case, is the most important task that you need to do all day and by getting it done first you can avoid a lot of procrastination, while also ensuring that the things that most contribute to your goals always get done. Which eventually can only lead to you achieving your long-term objectives.
Alternatively, another way of prioritizing effectively is to use a tool like the Eisenhower Matrix. This is a box divided into four smaller sections you can use to decide where to direct your time. Usually, the sections are labeled as do now, do later, schedule and delegate, or delete.
Do now being urgent and essential tasks, do later being essential but non-urgent tasks, schedule being for tasks that can be worried about at a later date, and delegate or delete for tasks that can either be handed off to someone else or aren’t actually necessary at all. Something else that can be very helpful in ensuring that the important steps towards achieving your goals are made.
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