Happy New Year! However you’ve spent the holiday season, the start of a new year tends to be the time most people think about the year ahead and what they would like to achieve in the next 12 months – particularly at work. This post looks at why it’s worth setting goals foryourself, and a couple of tips for setting achievable ones.
Why set goals?
For every person who sets goals, another thinks it’s not worth the effort. I mean, you know what you want and making a big deal of it can seem a little silly, right?
Not necessarily. Actively setting yourself goals helps put them into focus. Also, by taking the time to write them out (or type, however you work best) you are making them a priority, which is important if you want to stick with them.
Make them realistic, but stretch yourself
One important thing to remember when setting goals is to make them realistic and achievable, but also to stretch yourself.
For example, if one of your goals is to move from a sole contributor role into a leadership position, declaring “I will lead a team of 50 people by the end of the year” without factoring in practicalities like the availability of such a role, or your current skill set, probably isn’t the way to go.
Instead, consider what you can do to best position yourself for a leadership role in future. This could include becoming responsible for specific bodies of work that others will also contribute to, while avoiding the added pressure of official HR responsibilities, or looking to lead a smaller team for a specific project.
Break down big goals into smaller ones
Another tip when creating goals for yourself is to break down your bigger goals into smaller ones. This can help them seem less daunting and help you stick with them as time goes on.
Using the above example, moving from a role where you’re only responsible for managing yourself to managing others can be a difficult task – particularly if you do not already have leadership experience. One way to begin on this path is to volunteer to chair meetings, which can help you build confidence in your leadership skills. Alternatively, another could be to sek out a mentor, so you can see what it means to be a leader within your workplace.
Whatever your goals are, there’s no time like the present to start working towards them, so if you’re inclined to – start setting yourself some goals.
Until next time,
Louis
Louis Fameli 