Refocusing Your Goals for the Second Half of 2024

It's hard to believe we're already halfway through 2024. Here in the UK schools are breaking up for summer. I grew up in the 1970's and the Aliced Cooper hit "Schools out" always plays in my brain at this time of year.

As the summer break approaches, now is the perfect time to reflect on the goals you set at the start of the year and evaluate your progress so far.

For many finance leaders, the annual appraisal process at the beginning of the year involves setting objectives and key results for the coming 12 months. But if you're being honest, how many of you have actually made significant progress on those goals by this point in the year?

If you're on track, that's fantastic! You should feel proud of the hard work and discipline you've shown. But if you need to catch up or have gotten sidetracked, don't be too hard on yourself. This is a common challenge that most of us face.

The important thing now is to take a step back and really assess whether those original goals are still the right priorities for you. Do they truly align with your values and what you want to achieve? Or have your interests and circumstances shifted in a way that requires a change in direction?

Going back to "Schools Out", we all spent our early years in education and we became accustomed to the academic year. The academic year is quite different to the calendar year. I still find it strange to set annual goals in January when so much of that early experience was that new things started in September. One of the problems with annual goals is you probably set them over Christmas and New Year, which, in my view, is completely the wrong time to do so.

Setting annual goals can be limiting. Instead, I personally prefer to have a high-level vision for the next 3 years and then break that down into more manageable 100-day sprints. This allows me to stay agile and responsive to new opportunities or unexpected obstacles.

For the next 100 days - from the end of your summer holidays to the middle of December - I encourage you to take a fresh look at your goals. Start by identifying the 3-4 most impactful things you could focus on in this timeframe. Then, break each of those down into specific milestones and weekly targets.

Some things just need the right habits in place and constant repetition. Get the habits established in the first 10 days, then rinse and repeat for the following 90 days and you can achieve big things. This might be the approach for getting fit, losing weight, or training for that big event. Mark Channon joined me on an early episode of the GrowCFO Show and shared a huge amount about the importance of habits. It's really worth a listen.

https://www.growcfo.net/2021/01/07/19-how-to-achieve-your-objectives-with-mark-channon/

It's a little more complex for more strategic goals. Breaking down your 100-day goals into milestones is critical for success. I suggest allotting the first 10 days for preparation and research, the following 30 days for planning and blueprinting your approach, and the final 30 days for implementation. Of course, these timeframes can flex based on the complexity of the goal, but having clear milestones with associated deadlines will keep you on track.

Felix Velarde discussed this approach to goal setting when I interviewed him about his book Scale at Speed on the GrowCFO Show. He applies it directly to those goals that lead to scaling your business quickly.

https://www.growcfo.net/2022/01/18/cfo-role-in-scaling-a-business-with-felix-velarde-author-scale-at-speed/

Once you have your milestones set, the next step is to create a weekly and daily action plan to ensure you stay focused and make consistent progress. This level of granularity is what will ultimately turn your big goals into tangible achievements.

So, starting from now, what's in your one-year or three-year plan? What are the most important things to address in the next 100 days?

The second half of 2024 is full of potential. By taking the time now to refocus your priorities and create a clear action plan, you can finish the year strong and position yourself for an even more successful 2025. Don't let this opportunity slip away.