Self Improvement Articles - Set Personal Goals
- Date: 2010-07-16 - Word Count: 857
Share This!
Danny is the Customer Support Manager of PM Publishing in San Mateo, California. He was surprised to be promoted to this position after the previous manager resigned. Danny was not quite ready for the promotion. He managed 5 service employees in the company's West Coast office before he was promoted to managing 36 employees in 5 offices nationwide.
Danny has never taken time to plan changes in his life. He was thrown into the situation, thrown into resolving endless escalations from the regional offices. He resolves delivery delays, customer complaints, order changes and other typical service issues; always floating along in whatever direction the river of events takes him. Danny is completely reactive, struggling to manage his team and losing control of his work life. Always the last to leave every day (except of the night shift employees), he gets home after his kids have gone to bed. One night, while crunching on the cold dinner left behind by his wife, he wondered if there was a better way to manage his life.
Danny, like many people, has never set personal goals. For him, things just happen without a plan. It has never bothered him before, but being promoted to leadership caught him unready. He did not realize that living life without setting goals is like driving a car without knowing where to go. Danny recognized that he needs a compass to guide him in setting priorities and balancing his life.
If we want to avoid feeling out of control like Danny, it is important to set personal goals. Goals are a road map to guide us toward a destination, like a lighthouse, compass or GPS.
The end of a year is a good time to setup goals for the following year. Most companies plan the next year at this time. It is good to align your personal goals with your corporate goals so your career path will be congruent with your company path.
When I set up personal goals for the first time, I accomplished less than 10% of my goals by the end of that year. Since then my goal setting has changed dramatically. In the beginning I focused on career and prosperity. Over time, my goals (as well as me) evolved to include goals outside of career and prosperity.
Here are some topics to think about when setting goals:
1. Health
If we get sick our set of priorities changes immediately. If we face a life threatening illness, survival becomes top priority. Prevention is important.
Sample goals for health can be:
- Exercise 3 times a week for 45 minutes
- Quit smoking by dropping from one pack per day to 10 cigarettes by March, 5 cigarettes by June, 2 cigarettes by September and none by December.
2. Relationships
As social creatures, we naturally want to improve our relationships with our loved ones. Our life styles occasionally stand in our way. Setting relationship goals helps to determine the changes we are looking for in our relationships.
Some ideas:
- Get involved with kids school.
- Surprise spouse with a romantic dinner at least every 3 months
- Volunteer for favorite charity 3 times a year
3. Leisure
Leaders work hard and play hard. We must take time off to re-charge.
We can set goals like:
- Play tennis every Sunday
- Take guitar lessons every Monday night
4. Prosperity
Everyone would like to achieve financial freedom in one point of time (and better sooner than later). If we don't save for retirement we can never afford to retire. If we won't plan we won't save.
We can set goals as:
- Allocate 20% of monthly salary to a saving account
- Invest in rental property
5. Career
We spend half of our waking time at work. We definitely want to be accomplished and rewarded. This does not happen by chance. Successful career paths are planned. Where are we heading? What do we do to get there? Such goals can be:
- Start an MBA and complete in 2 years over the weekends
- Attend a tax course to reach a tax advisor certificate
- Restructure department(s) to prepare for business expansion
6. Self-Actualization
What do you feel is your true calling? This is not always easy to find this answer, but one can make small movements toward it. It's helpful to spend time to gain clarity on the "larger questions" in your life. Some goal setting ideas include:
- Define a purpose or framework within which you pursue all your activities
- Define core values that drive you
What in the world does goal setting have to do with leadership?
Leaders must lead themselves first in order to lead others. Setting goals, defining vision and values develops the inner strength that leaders require. Titles, nominations, rankings are superficial. True leadership comes from within.
Find out next week a foolproof plan to achieve most (if not all) all of your personal goals. Before then, take some time to write down 2 personal goals for each of the 6 items above. Stay tuned for the next post.
Danny has never taken time to plan changes in his life. He was thrown into the situation, thrown into resolving endless escalations from the regional offices. He resolves delivery delays, customer complaints, order changes and other typical service issues; always floating along in whatever direction the river of events takes him. Danny is completely reactive, struggling to manage his team and losing control of his work life. Always the last to leave every day (except of the night shift employees), he gets home after his kids have gone to bed. One night, while crunching on the cold dinner left behind by his wife, he wondered if there was a better way to manage his life.
Danny, like many people, has never set personal goals. For him, things just happen without a plan. It has never bothered him before, but being promoted to leadership caught him unready. He did not realize that living life without setting goals is like driving a car without knowing where to go. Danny recognized that he needs a compass to guide him in setting priorities and balancing his life.
If we want to avoid feeling out of control like Danny, it is important to set personal goals. Goals are a road map to guide us toward a destination, like a lighthouse, compass or GPS.
The end of a year is a good time to setup goals for the following year. Most companies plan the next year at this time. It is good to align your personal goals with your corporate goals so your career path will be congruent with your company path.
When I set up personal goals for the first time, I accomplished less than 10% of my goals by the end of that year. Since then my goal setting has changed dramatically. In the beginning I focused on career and prosperity. Over time, my goals (as well as me) evolved to include goals outside of career and prosperity.
Here are some topics to think about when setting goals:
1. Health
If we get sick our set of priorities changes immediately. If we face a life threatening illness, survival becomes top priority. Prevention is important.
Sample goals for health can be:
- Exercise 3 times a week for 45 minutes
- Quit smoking by dropping from one pack per day to 10 cigarettes by March, 5 cigarettes by June, 2 cigarettes by September and none by December.
2. Relationships
As social creatures, we naturally want to improve our relationships with our loved ones. Our life styles occasionally stand in our way. Setting relationship goals helps to determine the changes we are looking for in our relationships.
Some ideas:
- Get involved with kids school.
- Surprise spouse with a romantic dinner at least every 3 months
- Volunteer for favorite charity 3 times a year
3. Leisure
Leaders work hard and play hard. We must take time off to re-charge.
We can set goals like:
- Play tennis every Sunday
- Take guitar lessons every Monday night
4. Prosperity
Everyone would like to achieve financial freedom in one point of time (and better sooner than later). If we don't save for retirement we can never afford to retire. If we won't plan we won't save.
We can set goals as:
- Allocate 20% of monthly salary to a saving account
- Invest in rental property
5. Career
We spend half of our waking time at work. We definitely want to be accomplished and rewarded. This does not happen by chance. Successful career paths are planned. Where are we heading? What do we do to get there? Such goals can be:
- Start an MBA and complete in 2 years over the weekends
- Attend a tax course to reach a tax advisor certificate
- Restructure department(s) to prepare for business expansion
6. Self-Actualization
What do you feel is your true calling? This is not always easy to find this answer, but one can make small movements toward it. It's helpful to spend time to gain clarity on the "larger questions" in your life. Some goal setting ideas include:
- Define a purpose or framework within which you pursue all your activities
- Define core values that drive you
What in the world does goal setting have to do with leadership?
Leaders must lead themselves first in order to lead others. Setting goals, defining vision and values develops the inner strength that leaders require. Titles, nominations, rankings are superficial. True leadership comes from within.
Find out next week a foolproof plan to achieve most (if not all) all of your personal goals. Before then, take some time to write down 2 personal goals for each of the 6 items above. Stay tuned for the next post.
Original article by Dave Osh who is a forward thinking leader who has steered his way to the corporate pinnacle. His Thought Leadership blog is a wealth of stories, ideas, experiences, values, traits and skills which every manager who seeks a breakthrough towards international enterprise leadership needs.
Related Tags: leadership, business, training, management, skills, ceo, development, corporate, executive, strategic, organization, effective, qualities, dave osh
Your Article Search Directory : Find in Articles
Recent articles in this category:
- The Resurgence of Fred Perry Clothing
Summer might long be over and Wimbledon may be a distant memory, however the fashion is a year round - Uncovering Men's Tank Tops
I don't know a thing about you, but I'll bet that you have worn a tank top. Tank tops have also been - Make Use of Silk Scarves to Take Good Care of Your Skin
In the event you are new about silk scarves, you could never read about this particular feature of s - Just For Men Scarves - the Preference For Guys in the Vogue Domain
If you are not certain what style of present you could provide for men, maybe you can consider men s - Think Black Friday Shopping is Beyond Your Budget?
Moms who are juggling the bills and still trying to provide the perfect holiday gift to loved ones a - How to Make Conscious Shopping Choices
Many people have heard the phrase "voting with your dollars" and they understand that it means your - Silk Scarves - Unique Present Approach in Xmas Seasons
The most prevalent silk add-on is scarves, and many focus is presented on inspired designing on thes - Benefits of an Aloe Vera Shampoo
A lot of people are not aware of the specific benefits that using an aloe vera shampoo can do to the - How Effective is the Power of Your Subconscious Mind?
Most people are bombarded with this thought whenever they feel weak and wish to affect certain chang - Silk Scarf - the Record For Human Being in the Style History
Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries the worldwide recognition of silk scarves developed dramatica
Most viewed articles in this category:
- Surf and Turf: the Race Track
Surf and Turf: The Race TrackOne of the favorite places for The G to hang out at, especially in Summ - Are You Looking For Cholesterol Drugs Without Side Effect?
High cholesterol level is probably one of the widely spread complication among Americans. Almost for - Friday the 13th could be a lucky day?
Friday the 13th sounds unlucky ? Traditional superstition ? And a lot of people dislike it and beli - Don't Judge A Man
Our world is full of bad tongues, fault-finders, gossipers, mockers, and insulters but do these grou - When Personalized Gifts Make a Difference
Finding the right gifts for a particular occasion is always a challenging task. Sometimes it is nic - Managing My Resistance: Learning To Flow With What Life Offers
One of the things that interests me most about conflict is the tendency to resist it and the ways in - What Are Horoscopes Based On?
If you do not know much about astrology, you may wonder what are horoscopes based on and how astrolo - 7 Dumbest Relationship Mistakes Smart People Make
We often find ourselves amid the wreckage of a love gone wrong, wringing our hands and asking, "Why - Motivation as the heart of self improvement
You should be able to find several indispensable facts about Motivation in the following paragraphs - Is Complete Abstinence from Use of Paychoactive Substances Necessary for Recovery?
Can a sober alcoholic in recovery who has no history of abuse of marijuana, use marijuana without