5 Characteristics of Attainable Goals
by Todd Smith | Sep 11, 2012 | business plan template, raising capital, startups, balance, Crowdfunding, Visionaries, funding, taking actionTemplate, business plans, penn state, business plan help, creativity, Implementation lessons, avoiding distraction, business plan consulting firms, starting a business, social media, business plan review, Strategic Plan, Blog, business plan consultant, Business Plan, how to write a business plan, business plan consulting firm
5 Characteristics of Attainable Goals
As the NFL begins a new season I am reminded of a business principle - - characteristics of attainable goals. Just as we have goals for our businesses and personal lives, so do the NFL teams have goals. The big goal is the Super Bowl and the smaller goals are the plays of the game and winning the game, moving the ball down the field to score. On the surface a goal may seem simple but without a realistic plan we will never bring our team to the Super Bowl.
Here are five characteristics of attainable goals:
- Specific and Measurable: If you aren’t setting specific and measurable goals in your business or personal life, you aren’t going to meet them. It’s great to have a goal to be healthier but you will never get there because it’s too vague. Lose 30 pounds in six months is a specific, measurable and attainable health related goal. Set a specific and measurable financial goal for your business like increase net profit by $10k in Q3 and watch your business meet – and beat – the goal.
- Time limit: It’s great to say you’re going to write a business plan but unless you set a specific time limit you will never finish – and you may not ever start. When you set a deadline or a client sets a project deadline there is a sense of urgency created that didn’t earlier exist. You will have to set time to meet your goal and that focus because now you’re on deadline.
- Own it: Setting goals that are really someone else’s goals is a recipe for failure. If your spouse wants you to lose weight but you don’t care you will fail. There’s no personal ownership of a goal that isn’t your own so own you goals. If a business goal isn’t in line with the mission and vision of your company it isn’t going to be met. Business goals, just like personal, need to be owned by the people tasked to meet them which bring us to the next characteristic of attainable goals.
- Share your goals: Keeping goals a secret is a sure fire way to never meet them. Whether you’re sharing a health goal with a friend or a business goal with a management team, the same rule applies. As a business owner you need the team to feel they are wanted and needed to meet specific goals. This will cause them to act with a sense of urgency to meet the goals.
- Write them down: While we can’t say for sure why, we know goals that are written down are more likely to be met than those floating around in your head. Maybe it goes back to ownership. If you write the goals they are yours to be shares and met. Why we should write goals isn’t important so just do it!
What is a goal that you have for yourself or your business? How are you setting a course to meet your goal? We’re here to help!
