So last month we talked about the Curse of Christmas, and how that time of year highlights that the challenges we have now are exactly the same as they were last year, or worse. Then we concluded that unless we do something different, next Christmas will be just the same again.

So with that in mind we resolve to change things.

But what to change?

And where to start?

Well, before we start changing things, we need to know what we want achieve. That’s called setting Goals.

So what are Goals and why is it important to write them down?

A Goal sets out in plain terms what it is that you want to achieve. By writing it down, you are declaring your intention to make it happen. This can be the case whether the Goal is personal or within your business. In fact, if you own a business, often your business Goals are driven by your personal Goals.

When you’re running a business there are often other people involved in achieving your Goals, and by declaring your Goals openly it can be used to give clarity over what your priorities are, so that everyone can all strive towards that same Goal. That can create focus, commitment and enthusiasm, and enable you and your staff to put plans in place to achieve your Goals.

OK, so how do we define a set of Goals?

• Well firstly the Goal needs to be Specific. It’s not enough to say that you want to be rich, because everyone’s perception of rich is different, and you need to create a message which is clear to everyone. But if your Goal is very specific it can only be interpreted by everyone in the same way.
• Secondly, the Goal needs to Measurable. This often comes with being Specific,as you might define the goal in a measurable way. So you might say that your goal is to achieve a net profit of £100,000. That can be measured, and so the Goal is unambiguous.
• Thirdly the Goal needs to be Achievable. There is little point in having a goal to have 1,000,000 customers for your product or service if there are only 25,000 people who are ever going to be interested in buying such a service.
• Fourthly, the Goal needs to be Realistic. There is no point in creating a Goal which you cannot possibly achieve; I recently spoke to a chap who told me that he wanted to double the number of customers he sold to, while still staying as a one-man band. When I asked him how many hours did he work each week the answer he gave was 65. It hadn’t struck him that if he doubled the number of customers he would be working 130 hours a week……
• Lastly, the Goal needs to be Timely. You need to identify exactly by when you want to achieve this Goal; if you don’t put a timeframe to it then you will always be on the journey, but never arriving.

So, where do you start?

Just try defining the Goals for your business by identifying what it will look like in terms of Turnover, Profit, number of sales, number of employees and so on (Specific and Measurable) by the end of next year , and again by the end of the year after that (Timely).

Of course, you will need to know what those numbers look like now in order to make sure they are Realistic and Achievable, so start by working out what you're achieving now. Then once you have those Goals laid out, work out specifically what tasks you need to undertake in order to achieve that Goal, and list them, in the order you need to do them. Our Goal Setting Worksheet is there to help you to write that all down and then you will get some clarity as to what you need to aim for.
Of course, if you would like help to go through the process and then to determine exactly what you need to do to get there, then please get in touch to arrange a free business review with you.