Seems like the hardest question to ask someone is, “What are your long-term goals?” Why is this a difficult question when the answers can be awesome and incredibly motivating?
For some, the question about long-term goals forces them to examine if their current behavior/path are actually helping them go anywhere. If the focus is solely on the short-term and to worry about the future later, asking about long-term goals is a reality they don’t want to face. This mentality is why a lot of people in their 50s or even 60s are trying to plan for retirement now and finding out they are going to need their kids, other family members or the government for help.
For others, the big, long-term goals are exciting and motivating. It’s the details and the “how to” that is tough to get their head around. They’ve got amazing dreams but haven’t had much help flushing those plans out and getting specific action items behind how they’ll hit those big goals.
Still, there are others who have a hard time defining the big goals. They know how they want to feel (successful, accomplished, secure, growing …). They just don’t know what will get them to that feeling.
The reality is dreaming big and defining big goals is hard. But so what? If it didn’t take time, and effort, and re-evaluation, and obstacles, the big goals probably wouldn’t be so cool.
While goal-setting might be more important and interesting than a habit like preparation or organization, it is still just a habit. So practice and consistency are critical. Becoming a strong goal-setter is something to work on, something to get coaching on and something to develop.
A great way to start the habit is with a simple 1-2-3 approach to weekly goal-setting.
The first step is reflection. Carve out time to get out of the go-go-go, pause and think. Ask yourself how your past week went and if it was productive? Whether the answer is yes or no, ask why? This will get your mind in the right place.
The second step is to plot out the three most important things you can do the next week. Most people either don’t have a weekly plan or they have some have laundry list where they lump the important and not-so-important altogether in a task list format. The key is to develop a tight focus that you can build your week around.
The third step is to plan your schedule for the week. Take the key areas of focus and make sure you have time allotted to attack these priorities.
Effective goal-setting can get much, much deeper, but everyone needs to start somewhere. And creating the habit is the most likely way to make goal-setting a cornerstone of career success.
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