Achieving Goals_ Define and Surpass Your High Performance Goals - Kathleen Schienle [29]
You are now ready to put what you have learned from this book into practice. Use this section as a review guide.
CHAPTER 1.
GOAL-SETTING BASICS
Setting goals boosts performance: People with clear goals succeed because they know where they’re going.
Organizations benefit, too: Advantageous results include higher profits, better cash flow, stronger employee performance, increased productivity, less employee turnover, and more recruiting success.
Goal-setting is a cycle: Coach, provide feedback, evaluate, and reward, then keep repeating.
Goals work: they provide a target; help focus time and effort; enhance desire and motivation; dictate priorities; and give you a roadmap.
Write it down: Just as most pianists are assisted by a score, goal-setters can more easily keep track and check-off tasks with a written record.
Don’t be afraid: For goal-setting, the message is “nothing ventured, nothing gained”—not “nothing ventured, nothing lost.”
Be open and approachable: Instead of the command-and-control model, the modern manager should try to delegate and coach.
CHAPTER 2.
DEVELOPING GOALS THAT WORK
Break it down: Dividing challenging goals into smaller ones can make even stretches attainable.
Goals should be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound.
Make your goals effective: Target an objective; have a measurable outcome; include a specific finishing date and/or time; specify the outer limits of outlay in time, resources, and money.
Be specific: Craft goals in clear, simple language. Effective goal statements inspire action.
Be realistic: A goal that is too far out of reach may discourage employees rather than motivate them.
Set a deadline: Having a time frame for a goal gives impetus for advancing toward it sooner rather than later.
Be flexible: Goals are not written in stone; if the overall business cycle or an individual’s assignment changes, then performance goals must change, too.
Set competency goals that allow people to develop “soft skills”: Improved initiative and creativity, leadership and independence, people skills, productivity, quality, and responsibility make for a better overall employee.
Reinforce your organization’s culture and values: The goal-setting process allows for a discussion of the basic strategy of your company. Be ambitious: When setting long-term goals, try including one BHAG (big, hairy, audacious goal).
CHAPTER 3.
THE MANAGER’S ROLE IN SETTING GOALS
Don’t take a top-down approach: If employees at all levels of the organization help to create goals, then people will be more invested in setting and meeting them.
Synchronize goals from one department or division to another: Working at cross-purposes won’t help anybody.
Goal-setting usually has three components: discussion; compromise or give-and-take; and agreement.
Look at the big picture: Individual goals should make the greatest contribution to the overall plan.
Individualize goals: Analyze the strengths and weaknesses of your employees, your organization, and yourself; find and focus on opportunities; and be aware of possible threats to your goal’s success.
Accentuate the positive: Assigning team members tasks according to their strengths will achieve goals most quickly and efficiently.
Consider personality type: Basic goal-setting personality types include the Warrior, the Explorer, the Diplomat, and the Scholar; work with them accordingly.
Empower your employees: Give responsibility as well as accountability.
CHAPTER 4.
MANAGING GOALS
Goals take work: After goals are set, create a list of steps to take to meet these goals, then create an action calendar or schedule to achieve your goals in a timely manner.
Anticipate problems: Identify possible obstacles to accomplishing goals and then develop contingencies to combat them.
Face fears: If employees lack skills, build training into their action plan.
Achieving goals is personally rewarding: They produce enhanced skills, job satisfaction, and a sense of ownership.
You can motivate your employees by expanding teamwork,