On January 2022 Lunch and Learn Event: Goal Setting, Relax Teams invited panelist Bertha Robinson shared her knowledge and expertise on Goal Setting and Goal Achievement.
What is the Importance of Goal Setting to Business Strategy?
Bertha Robinson is the founder of a global coaching consulting firm Star One Professional Services. Her passion for the last six years has been working with visionary business leaders who take an approach of prioritization and turn it into habits. She is also working with various leaders across the US, making sure that they are able to meet and exceed their goals.
At Star One Professional Services, they use a five-point approach to help businesses who need to shore up their structure, their strategy, their process, and procedures. They want to make sure that teams are being recognized. They do that because they believe that it's all about people, no matter how much we invest in technology, and talk about the future of technology and robotics. It's always been about the human being and the human relationship.
They look at assessments to see which ways they're communicating with one another, making sure that they are on the same page and that they recognize and honor the desired approach. They also look at acumen and understand EQ, knowing that emotional intelligence is something that they can harness and can continue to improve.
“That unique ability to connect with teams is an outstanding opportunity to have, outside customer loyalty.”
While leading Star One Professional Services as a global business coaching consulting firm. Bertha also has had a second hat since July of last year. She’s the President of the New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners. She loves working with women business owners who are looking at opportunities that are ahead of them through certifications. She believes that every woman business owner should be a member. But even if you're not a member, they support all women business owners in the state of New Jersey.
How Would You Address Setting Goals?
Close the gap between goal setting and goal achievement and make sure that those habits stick. We all want to do things but do we actually do the work? Part of Bertha’s process with clients and friends is making sure that they follow a goal planning sheet.
Everyone's familiar with SMART goals Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistically High, and Time-bound. Bertha adds to that criteria is WHY:
Making sure that our goals are Written is critical. We don't just say that they're in our heads and expect it to happen. It has to be something that we write. Having that connection between our brain to paper is really critical and important in the process of attainment and achievement. The second thing is that they are in alignment or that they're Harmonious. They have to be in alignment with the other things that are in our life. Whether it be our personal or our business. We are holistic beings, we can't set goals in our business that are contradictory to what we want to accomplish in our personal life. The letter Y represents Yours. They have to be your goals, you have to be passionate about them. They have to have a story that's going to pull you and push you to attain it.
The actual process of achievement in the goal planning process is that you identify that one goal and the goal has to be structured properly. The criterion is to help you make sure that it is a goal.
The first step is a brain dump. Write down everything that you want to accomplish. Your dreams, your ideas, and then you structure it with the WHY-SMART criterion. Once you have that, you take that one goal and you give it the time-bound piece. You have to make sure that you have a deadline and affirmation for it. Your affirmation should be written in the first person. They should be positive and it's something that's going to fuel you. Whether it is daily or not, it depends on when your goal is due. Whether it's every time you're about to achieve it, you need to work on it and look at that affirmation to fuel you.
Rewards and Consequences
The other piece of it is looking at the rewards and consequences. Ask yourself: What are the rewards for attaining this goal? For instance, if you achieve losing these 10 pounds in the X time frame, what does that give you? Are you going to feel better? Are you going to be able to have more energy to play with your children? Are you gonna be able to fit in those clothes that you've been wanting to fit in? Whatever the goal is for you, the reward is going to fuel you but then the other side is the consequences. Unfortunately, most people are actually fueled more by avoiding the consequence as opposed to achieving the reward. So you can also ask yourself: What are the consequences of not reaching the goal?
The next thing you want to write is your obstacles to achieving the goal. Sometimes it's losing that impetus, that fuel, the want to do it. Every January 1st everyone has the resolution but then a week later, sometimes even sooner, we lose the energy to make it happen. That's why we want to write out all our obstacles and then write out the solution to the obstacle. When the obstacle presents itself, you will already have your plan B.
In that line item for your obstacle and its solution then you also want to see, is there someone that you can delegate to? Do I need some help in making this step happen? Do I need to learn something? Is there something that I'm missing? That way you can have a really strong plan B for when that obstacle presents itself. That's why making sure in the WHY criterion that it's your goal, that it's harmonious, it has a story behind it, and then you'll fuel yourself to make it happen. Be consistent looking at it, writing it down, and you'll be able to achieve your goals.
Importance of Goal Setting
Why is accountability important?
Bertha also added that having an accountability partner, a circle or a group is great but make sure that you realize that the power is really within your hands and you hold yourself accountable. Visioning is really powerful too, have affirmations that help you and you're going to make it happen. Make it something that you love, write it down, have some activity behind it, and get a partner that can help you go along on the journey with you.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Start with dreaming big. Dream what's going to fuel you. We tend to grow up and forget about being the child inside and what it was that we wanted to do when we wanted to grow up. If there are certain things that you want to do and you feel that you have an obstacle and you can't achieve it or you can't get there, remember that there is no such thing as can't. You can, we can do this collaboratively so look for someone who can help you. Someone who's been there, who's done that, who can shape the path and can help you write down all your dreams. Then give those dreams some structure to them. Make sure that it's specific, measurable, attainable, realistically high, and it has some type of time-bound because if it doesn't have a deadline it's going to stay there.
Once you have that goal make it manageable, take those small bites. Make sure that when you do achieve those little ones that lead you to the longer-term goals or the mid-size range goals you take the time to celebrate that. The more you have those wins and celebrations the more you can convert this goal achievement process into a habit and you'll be achieving more and more. It will be a part of who you are and you'll be able to share it with others and bring others along the path to their success. So it's not about you just achieving in your business separately from achieving in your home or your personal life. It's holistic.
January 2022 Lunch and Learn Event: Goal Setting
- Why Goal Setting is Important?
- On Setting Goals: Know Your WHY\
- Aim for Progress to Reach Goals, not Perfection
Recommended Readings:
- Retain MORE of What You Earn So You Can Pursue Your Passion
- Achieve Your Long-Term Goals with Candido Rodriguez
- How Do You Retain Talent in a Tight Labor Market?
- Characteristics of a Healthy Business
- Relax Teams: How to Outrank Others and Get Your Business Found