How Good Goals Become Bad: Staying on Track

Whether you’re a solo business owner or have a full team to support your growth efforts, taking your business to the next level requires a lot of moving parts.?

You might be wearing more hats than you want to be at this time. You might not have all of your systems and processes in place. And maybe not even the right team members in the right place.

But, you have plans to do big things. So, everything has to get done.

Usually the most exciting part of setting goals is the actual setting of the goals.?

It can be exciting to put ideas on paper and assign deadlines to complete the action items. . . especially if the vision of where you want to go is clear.

But simply putting those plans on paper doesn’t guarantee they actually get done.?

In fact, a Clutch survey published in 2020 states that only about 5% of small businesses actually complete their goals within any 12 month period.?

And while that number is terribly small, it isn’t surprising.?

So what happens? Why do businesses typically fail to achieve the exact things they set out to do?

Well, the truth is that it’s more than just poor goal setting (this is NOT an article about using SMART to set better goals . . . although they can be helpful).?

The reality is that good goals become bad for two reasons.?

First, as I already alluded above, many businesses don’t have the systems in place to execute goals in a timely manner. One of the things I explore with business owners is whether they have the systems in place they need to accomplish the things they say they want.

Many of us may feel constrained by systems, but ultimately without them it becomes impossible to get what you really want.?

Systems are like the glue that holds the foundation in place and allows other pieces to stick to.?

Think about it for a moment. Perhaps you have a goal to kick off a new podcast, but without a system around who’s going to generate content, when you’re going to record, the right tools to record, a person to edit the podcast, create show notes and distribute the podcast to all the necessary places . . . the goal of sharing a consistent podcast can hit delay after delay.

And if you don’t document that process, well then you’re just repeating yourself over and over, losing time.?

Now imagine as you’re focused on THAT goal, the five other goals you had for your business have fallen behind. In part because you’re the necessary cog to move those forward and in part because you’ve pulled your other team members to focus on getting your podcast up and running.

Starting a podcast may not be your goal, but this kind of thing happens every day in business. We don’t really consider the moving parts.

And if you’re a quick start (like me), chances are that you feel like there’s just no time to document what you’re doing. You have to focus on whatever brings in revenue - and right now systems don’t seem like they’re necessary.

I know because I’ve been there.

And to be honest, this is really a typical mindset trap because our own urgency, money mindset or fears can drive us to skip key steps in business growth - which is costly in terms of dollars, time and energy.

Which is why I’ve become a systems convert and encourage my clients to do the same.

Without automations and systems (and the documentation to support those systems), you lose hours and hours in your business - and move further away from your goals.?

Anything and everything you do can have a system and process. And it doesn’t have to be hard to document (another mindset trap).?

All you have to do is record what you’re doing in real time and have the video transcribed and edited. That’s it.?

You can even have systems that track your goals so that you? know when you’ve fallen off and need to adjust them (more on that in a bit).

Which brings me to the second reason good goals become bad.?

You forget about your goals.

That may sound extreme, but think about it for a moment.?

Have you ever found yourself looking at your current goals, only to be reminded by someone or something (like a random LinkedIn post even), that you had the intention of completing a goal that’s no longer on your list?

Most business owners I talk to have had this experience.

Or worse yet, the goal just lingers and becomes an incompletion that follows you around month to month - year to year.?

I recall one client sharing with me that they had “starting a You Tube channel” on their list for the last two years. The hope had been to record short 10-minute videos to inform their audience about important strategies around marketing.?

They kept telling themselves they would do it when they had more time, more money, more support.?

But instead of getting to it, they would forget about it from time to time and then when they did remember, all they felt was shame and disappointment.?

A good goal that was supposed to help their business now became a dead weight to beat themselves up about and get less and less done in the area of growth.?

And the problem is that most people who do remember their old goals have a hard time letting go of them. . . . because they were good ideas. And good ideas (unlike good goals) die hard.?

Which is where flexibility and renewed goal setting needs to be a normal part of your goal setting and goal tracking.

You see - when a goal goes off track, most people just leave it there without re-evaluating the goal deadlines and action steps.?

So, what happens is that client work, family, new goals and projects all take priority.?

When working with clients, I invite clients to set up systems around tracking goals that allow them to shift dates and set more realistic action items - so that progress remains ongoing.

The reality is the second a goal goes off track, it needs to be re-evaluated.?

Otherwise motivation, interest and determination wanes. And then it’s that much harder to get started - in fact, from a mindset perspective that’s how it feels . . . like you’re starting over again.

The truth is that even if you’re overwhelmed in your business putting out fires, marketing and addressing client needs, making even the smallest changes like recording your processes or tracking the success of your goals will create more forward momentum in your business than if you sat down this Friday just to play catch up (partly because another fire will come up and you’ll have to push your goal off again).?

So, if you’re a repeated offender of the good goal gone bad syndrome, it might be time to think beyond the SMART goals system every other coach recommends and solve the problem BEFORE you set the goal in the first place.

---> Create plans for tracking your goals.?

---> Work simultaneously to create your systems (and have all team members do the same).

----> Remain flexible.?

----> Create small micro-steps that are doable, no matter what you’re faced in your business.

Do all this and you’ll start to have an entirely new relationship with your goals.

And last - but definitely not least - take a look at that incompletions list. If you’ve had a goal on there that’s been dragging around with you for more than 12 months, it’s time to re-evaluate and decide if this goal is really important to your business.?

If not, it can come off so you can create the mental space you need to tackle the goals you’ll actually complete.

Linda

P.S. If you’re interested in my framework for goal-tracking, send me a message to schedule a paid goal tracking session we can do with you or together with your team!

#crackthecode

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About the Author, Linda Perry: ?Linda a success strategist, speaker and recovering attorney who has helped hundreds of people crack their own success code and find greater freedom, make more money and find balance.

She spent 17 years as a federal criminal defense attorney in Chicago, and left only to pursue her passion in coaching and business strategy after witnessing how much it impacted her life and helped her redefine success.?

With certifications from the esteemed Ford Institute, established by best selling author and teacher Debbie Ford, and from the Levin Life Coach Academy, where she is the lead business instructor guiding life coaches how to build a profitable life coach business -? Linda works with entrepreneurs, small business owners, attorneys, other professional service providers and creative entrepreneurs to help them build the business they truly love.

She is the host of the Mindset First Podcast and regularly is a guest speaker on a variety of podcast and stages focused on using mindset tools to get further.?

She currently live in the mountains of Colorado with her husband, dog and kids (when they’re home).