Setting Powerful Goals

Why Set Goals?

The process of setting and achieving goals can be like building a ladder from where you are to where you want to be. Sharp, clearly defined goals that are meaningful to you can give you a sense of purpose and improve your self-confidence. Simply knowing where you are going can mean that you will get there faster, just ask Wayne Gretzky, the NHL’s all-time leading scorer. Writing your goals down and sharing with others can increase your chance of successfully completing them. 

How to Successfully Achieve Your Goals

Goal achievement is influenced by writing meaningful goals, committing to goal-directed actions, and being accountable for those actions. Below are five steps for writing your goals:

1. Set Goals that Motivate You – make sure that they are important to you. Relate the goal to the priorities in your life, and then focus the goal down to its essence. One great check is to ask yourself “Why?” after you’ve written the goal down, and keep asking until you have the single nugget of purpose. Then rewrite the goal to address that purpose.
2. Set SMART Goals

Specific – well defined; clear to anyone who has a basic knowledge of the project

Measurable – know if the goal is obtainable and how far away completion is; know when it has been achieved.

Achievable – results are attainable.

Relevant – relates directly to company goals, and measures actual outputs such as products, deliverables and accomplishments

Time-Framed – enough time to achieve the goal; not too much time

3. Write Your Goals Down – this makes it real and tangible. Use positive action words like “will” instead of “would like.”
4. Make an Action Plan – plan all of the steps needed along the way. By writing down each step, then crossing each one off as you complete it, you can measure progress towards your goal.

Here’s an interesting fact: each time we successfully achieve something, our brain releases the reward chemical dopamine. Dopamine activates the part of the brain responsible for pleasure, learning and motivation. Thus, the more you succeed, the more likely you are to continue.

5. Stick with It – build in reminders to focus, review your goals regularly, and communicate your plan to someone who will hold you accountable.

Writing goals is a skill that improves with practice. I have been using the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey as a goal-setting platform for many years, and each year I refine the process and get better at setting goals that I am motivated to achieve. Each year I review my goals over time and realize that my life is truly a tapestry, not just a series of random events.

What Makes a Plan Successful?

Many people fail to realize the value of a project in saving time, money and many issues. Even small projects should be thought through; otherwise problems can quickly spin results out of your control. A good plan creates a platform for communication, establishes and manages expectations, and prioritizes and focuses resource utilization.

Specifically, a project plan should have these elements:

Goal – a project is successful when a goal has been attained. It is important that you identify the stakeholders in your project and find out their needs. Take the time to understand their true needs so that your project creates real benefits. Your goal statement should be SMART – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Framed.

Once you have defined the project goal, create a list of deliverables. Specify how and when each one should be completed. These can be translated into milestones in the schedule below.

Scope – this section of the project explains the boundaries of the project, establishes responsibilities for team members, and sets up procedures for communication, delegation, and approval. The better the scope is set at the beginning, the easier it is to adapt the plan to changes along the way.

Schedule – create a list of tasks to carry out for each deliverable and assign a due date. For each task, identify:

·         the amount of effort (hours or days) required

·         the resources assigned

·         any contingencies to be met

Budget – assign a cost for each deliverable. Be sure to include wages; equipment purchases, maintenance or rental; supplies; and contractor costs.

One of the common realizations at this point is that the project has an unrealistic delivery time or cost based on estimates. The Iron Triangle gives you the following options to ensure project success:

1.        Renegotiate the deadline (time)

2.        Employ additional resources (cost)

3.        Reduce the deliverables in quality or quantity (scope)

Now you should have a reasonably well thought-out plan. While you may have spent some time at your desk that you would have rather spent completing actionable items, this process will result in a plan that:

·         Clearly communicates the goal and scope of the project

·         Uses resources effectively and efficiently by detailing tasks with responsibilities, priorities and deadlines

·         Provides transparency to team members and stakeholders

·         Identifies risks and plans for contingencies so that setbacks can be dealt with quickly

5 Steps to Planning A Successful Project

The key to a successful project is in the planning.  Creating a project plan is the first thing you should do when undertaking any kind of project.  Taking the time to plan a project can seem tedious, especially when you are excited about the potential outcome, but having a project plan can save time, money, and many problems.  There are five elements of a project plan:

1. Goals:  A project is successful when the needs of the stakeholders have been met.  The best way to determine who the stakeholders are and their needs is to conduct interviews.  Take the time to understand the true needs that create real benefits.  Once you have a comprehensive list of needs, assign them a priority level and create a set of  SMART goals.  Record the set of goals in the project plan.   
2. Deliverables:  Create a list of things from the goals that the project needs to deliver in order to meet those goals.  Specify how each item should be delivered.  Add them to the project plan, under the relevant goal, with an estimated delivery date.
3. Schedule:  Create a list of tasks to be carried out for each deliverable.  Identify the amount of time required to complete the task, the resource, and any contingencies to carrying out the task.  Use this information to refine the estimated delivery dates listed under the deliverables. One of the common realizations is that the project has an unrealistic timeline based on your estimates.  Consider the following actions to reestablish expectations:  1)  Renegotiation of the deadline (project delay); 2)  Employment of additional resources (increased cost or personnel); 3)  Reduction in the scope of the project (less delivered)
4. Budget:  Assign a cost for each deliverable.  Be sure to include resource wages; equipment purchases, maintenance, or rental; supplies; and contractor costs.
5. Supporting Plans:  Below is a suggested list of plans that could be a simple, one-page memo to support your project plan.

• Human Resource Plan - a list of participants and resources, with their roles and responsibilities
• Communications Plan - a document outlining who needs to be kept informed of project progress, as well as frequency and method of communication
• Risk Management Plan - identify as many risks to your project as possible.  Track the risks with a simple log, write down what you will do in the event that it occurs, and what you will do to prevent it from occurring.  Some examples of risks are:  time and cost estimates too optimistic, unexpected budget cuts, unclear roles and responsibilities, poor communication, and lack of resources.

photo courtesy of MyStrategicPlan.com

Project planning is a skill that improves with practice.  The first project will take some time to develop, but keep at it, for you will find that this exercise will help you to keep the project on track and to clearly communicate expectations.

KPI's for Your Business (and QuickBooks' Company Snapshot)

Running a small business is all about the details.  So much that you can lose sight of the direction your business is taking.  Key Performance Indices (KPI) are a great way for you to see the big picture.  
          Although there are standard KPI's out there for you to use, they can be just about anything, customized to your business.  The trick to making the KPI's significant to you is easy, just follow these steps in making your choice:

1. Use your vision or business plan to focus.  Is customer service your mission?  Choose KPI's that relate to responsiveness, timeliness, and quality of service.
2. Choose 5 or less KPI's to keep an eye on.  Make sure you have one for revenue, one for profitability, and one for cash. 
3. Look at these first, before you look at the rest of your financial statements.  The summary will give you a direction for your review, and you can find answers to your questions.

Quickbooks' Company Snapshot is a ready-made tool that does just that.  Unfortunately, your choices are limited, but there are some good ones in there.  You can program the Snapshot to open on your desktop when you open Quickbooks, which is a good way to get in the habit of checking your company's big picture.

• Open the Company Snapshot (in the bar next to your Home button).  To add content, click the "Add Content" link on the upper left hand side.  You can scroll through the Quickbooks options to select five that work best for you.  
•  I recommend that you use the Income/Expense chart, the A/R Aging report, the Account Balances list, the Vendors to Pay list, and either the Top Customers by Sales or Top Product Sales.  You can arrange these on your desktop by dragging.
• To remove graphs or reports, click the upper right hand "X" and Quickbooks will delete it from your desktop.
• To program Quickbooks to open this report every time you start Quickbooks, with the Company Snapshot open (and no other windows), go to Edit/Preferences/Desktop View and select the Save Current Desktop option.  Click the Save button and you are done!
• There's also a Payments tab at the top of the Snapshot that will take you to another summary screen that is oriented towards receiving customer payments and making vendor payments.  This can be customized similar to the Company page.

There are three other KPI's that I would highly recommend you include at least in your monthly reporting:  Cash Gap, Expenses Per $ Revenue, and Product Margins.

Why Is Growth So Hard?

         Bottlenecks.  We've all encountered them:  in line at the grocery store, waiting to turn left onto a busy street,  at the end of a long day when we just can't get the beer in fast enough.  Even in today's Now-Now-Now environment, these limiters to action are pervasive.   Failing to account for them in business growth planning would be a mistake.

Courtesy of geograph.org.uk via Creative Commons

         Most operations people are familiar with bottlenecks in processes, and with identifying and unblocking them.  However, another place that bottlenecks show up is in growth planning.  As you prepare your company for the new year and you begin developing your goals, be aware that sneaky bottlenecks may limit you.  Look for them in the following places to ensure that you haven't overestimated your growth capacity:

• Suppliers - make sure that your suppliers can support your proposed growth.  If not, make sure that you can find secondary or even tertiary suppliers.
• Customers - evaluate your current customers, and understand their business.  What are your customers' plans for the next year?  What is the market doing, in general and in your specific industry?  You may know intuitively that new business is out there, but how are you going to connect with that business?
• Production - go through you production process and identify the bottlenecks and at what capacity that they become limiting.  What works at this level or sales may begin to unravel at a greater level. 
• Staff - evaluate your current staff's capacity for change, ability to prioritize, and work ethic. Sometimes bottlenecks are hidden in your current staff.  Inefficiencies or inadequacies in your current staff may not surface until the pressure is on. 

         Identifying your potential bottlenecks to growth is just the first step.  Continue the process by determining how you are going to open it up and improve the flow in that area.  Brainstorm with the rest of your company not just the goals, but the path to get there.

What experiences have you had with bottlenecks?  What did you do to overcome them (or have you)?