We all make New Year resolutions in our personal life, but what about our professional life? Do leaders need to make resolutions?
Being a leader should not necessarily entail resolutions, but rather establishing goals. So how does a leader come up with these goals?
1. Define goals
- Write down your goals. This may sound simple, but it's often overlooked.
- Block out time to think about what is important for you to focus on.
- Ask important questions. These will help determine your goals.
2. Make a commitment
- Being committed is important, for this will help you in being accountable to not only yourself but also others.
- Have an action plan. This can be weekly, biweekly or even monthly. Charting what you would like to accomplish makes it more of a reality.
- Engage others. Look to a trusted friend to help in making sure you are following through.
3. Prepare for setbacks
- No matter how well you may plan your goals, be prepared for setbacks.
- Revise your goals as required to work around problems that may arise.
- Do not beat yourself up if there is a snag. Keep it positive. Negativity can seep into your organization and can undermine what you are trying to accomplish.
4. Enjoy the ride
- As you progress through the year, reassess the initial goals and determine what are your new priorities.
- Take time each week to hone your goals.
- The action plan should be revised to fit any changes in your goals.
5. Involve others
- As a leader, you will focus your goals on how to make the organization better.
- In addition to involving a trusted friend, get others across the organization to help you.
- By providing the initial goals, you have provided a vision for the year ahead. Let others help push through this vision, and this will produce a more cohesive environment.
Finally, goal setting is not done in a day and then put on a shelf. Goal setting is providing a vision for an organization to follow. It is decisiveness — take action, and it will go a long way.
John F. Kennedy said it best: "There are risks and costs to a program of action, but they are far less than the long-range risks and costs of comfortable inaction."