New Year’s Resolutions and FTI
The act of making New Year’s resolutions is an interesting one. Although we know that statistically, we are highly unlikely to maintain or meet the promises we make, the process of thinking about what you want to achieve and setting goals is, in itself, one that serves a purpose and carries some merit.
But what is it that stands in the way of us achieving the things we set out to – not just when it comes to making New Year’s resolutions, but in the general course of our business lives? Here we look at the main factors affecting Failure to Implement (FTI) and how to try and overcome these.
Keeping goals quiet
Psychologically, one of the main recommendations for staying on course to achieve a goal is to make it real by writing it down and leaving it on visible display, or sharing it openly with others. By doing this, you are removing any doubt on what the goal is, or the option for it to be conveniently amended later down the line! However, if you make a resolution in your own head and fail to commit it to paper/a document, you are reducing your accountability and therefore already making it less likely for it to happen.
Going solo
As a business owner, setting goals for your business is likely to be fairly straightforward as you will inherently know where you want to get to. The issue is that this is a solitary process, meaning you are unlikely to communicate these goals with those working alongside or around you. You may very well have personal goals, but seeking to consult those that share in the business with you or even employees can help to create joint goals that you can all work towards achieving. It’s the same principle as attending a regular group; for example for exercise or weight loss; when you share in a goal with others, you often have a greater sense of commitment along with a shared responsibility.
Letting it go unchecked
Not everyone is good at self-reflection and if you’re more of a forward-thinker rather than someone who looks back, it can be all too easy to ‘forget’ to review your goals. However, in forgoing to evaluate your goals at least annually, you risk simply drifting into the next year – or two, or three – without having recognised what you may – or may not – have attained. By setting a date to revisit your goals later at the end of year, perhaps also with a few ‘checking in’ appointments throughout the year to see where you’re up to, you’re much more likely to strive to achieve.
In addition to the above, the old adage of making goals SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) very much applies.
Our business consultants regularly work with business owners in the process of setting business goals along with KPI’s to measure and monitor the everyday ins and outs of business life. For a free of charge initial consultation, please get in touch.
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