The importance of setting goals

The importance of setting goals is a fundamental piece for the development and progress of an organization.

It is like pandemic, but I have to say that most people I know are completely losers in all aspects of goal achievement, let alone goal setting, and goal identifying.

Daily I meet people that although they want to do things, they fail to do them, for a variety of reasons that I am going to explain below in this article.

You might find my articles interesting, you might not, however in this article specifically you are going to find the reasons why goals are not achieved and what you can do to change that. You can find the 9 steps to achieve goals and the importance of setting goals properly.

The goal needs to be CRYSTAL CLEAR, because the less crystal clear is going to be, a. the less actionable is going to be, since its complexity is going to add reluctancy in its execution, b. it might contain, (or be perceived to contain) multiple variations or multiple other goals c. or even worse it might contain (or be perceived to contain) contradictory goals.

1. Set up CLEAR GOALS

The clarity of the goals is the first thing I advise my clients on my sales coaching business.

As the human mind, is an apparatus way more complex than a computer (at least so far), it does not operate on a 1 -0 basis, on a binary basis as a computer operates. Emotions, perceptions, obsessions, experience or the lack of it, culture and other factors influence the thinking process. What regards the setting up of goals, there is no better turf to see this complexity and polychromy of thoughts and ideas.
In goal setting however the complication of thoughts and ideas achieves the non-understanding of them and contributes on the reluctance of wanting to start a goal due to its unclarity.
Like a mathematical formula which ends up on the most simplistic form that it can be presented, similarly a goal needs to be presented, needs to be set up in the simplest form that it can have.
It needs to be CRYSTAL CLEAR, because the less crystal clear is going to be, a. the less actionable is going to be, since its complexity is going to add reluctancy in its execution, b. it might contain, (or be perceived to contain) multiple variations or multiple other goals c. or even worse it might contain (or be perceived to contain) contradictory goals.
Goals need to be super clear for everybody involved in the goal chasing process.

2. The goal needs to contain a “call to action”.

Everyone of you that is involved in sales or marketing certainly knows what a call to action is.
A stimulus intended to induce a viewer, reader, or listener to perform a specific act, typically taking the form of an instruction or directive.
The “call to action” is the spark, the explanation of the exact first step that needs to be taken in order to start a journey that is eventually going to end up in the achievement of a goal.
Similarly, as the goal needs to be crystal clear, the call to action needs to be also crystal clear, not contradictory, and easy to execute.
A goal goes always together with a clear call to action. We need to have a call to action when we set up a goal.

3. There must be ONLY ONE call to action.

On my video with the title “sell more by offering less!” , I explain the power of offering less choices to your prospects, rather than more. With the article “When choice is demotivating.” Columbia and Stanford university professors Sheena Iyengar and Mark Lepper explain exactly through practical experimentation how and why more choices drive to poorer results and less actions.
In the case of a call to action as a basic ingredient of goal setting there is a single rule: THERE HAS TO BE ONLY ONE CALL TO ACTION.
There is only one choice, on step forward to do, not multiple. Either you do that step, or you don’t, there is no alternative.

4. Time

Each goal we set is always related to a time frame. If not, then it is not a goal, it might be a wish, or a dream, but certainly is not a goal.
The necessary element of a goal is time. WHEN is something going to be accomplished or by when?
Since us humans are mortal, everything we do in this world has by definition a certain time frame. Similarly, the goals we set need to have a certain time to achieve them.
Setting up a realistic time frame for the achievement of a goal, is a deep topic by itself.
If there is not time reference, there is not goal in the first place.

5. The importance of setting goals that are attractive.

The goals need to be attractive, or as attractive they can get. No one is going to chase an unattractive goal with the same passion and dedication as an attractive one. It makes sense, doesn’t it?
Goals need to be attractive and fulfilling to be chased. The more attractive a goal is the more individuals are going to chase it and the more competition around this goal is going to be.

6. The importance of setting goals that are rewarding.

Someone must earn enough for the accomplishment of a goal. Earning does not necessarily have to be monetary, but it can be for example the recognition of a certain achievement or the adoption from a group or the earned respect.

7. Attract the attention for a goal.

Attention is the new currency. In this new digital world, with those oceans of information and the plethora of data and intelligence, attention is a hard-earned piece of currency. The one that masters the science of attracting the attention is the one that is going to have visible goals. Visible goals are the ones that if all the right parameters explained above match, are going to be chased and pursued. Use the correct wording when you set up a goal, spark the interest of the listener or viewer or employee you aim the goal to, set up the correct context for the goal to be nested.

8. Follow up like a madman

No goal is ever going to be achieved if it is not followed up religiously, with commitment, consistency and dedication. That might be the most challenging part of all.
Many goals are being started, only to be abandoned after some time. When the motivation fades away, when the first hardship on the pursue of the goal starts, it is then where most people give up and stop pursuing the goal.
There is not a lot that can be done for that, if however, the above mentioned steps are there, then the probability to continue chasing them is higher.

9. Make sure the goal you set is the correct goal.

That might be the most challenging part of all, for the reason that the correct goal is directly related with the fundamental idea we set up. The discovery of the fundamental idea is the basis for the creation of the goals to come. If the fundamental idea we set up, is a wrong idea, or an utopic idea or simply a weak idea, then by definition, the goals to be set up to achieve this idea are going to be the vehicles to the wrong outcome, and even if achieved, their accomplishment is going to be meaningless since the source, the spark that ignited them was a wrong one.

Goal setting is by itself is a topic that needs to be mastered. Not only the importance of setting goals is crucial for the executor of the goals, most importantly if not set corrected the results for the goal setter are not going to reflect his expectations.
Set up goals wisely.