It’s almost half-way through the year and that means it’s a great time to take a minute to figure out if you’re where you wanted to be when you set your business goals back in December or January.
What were you thinking when you read that sentence?
- Uh, I didn’t set goals for 2015. I just take things as they come.
- Yes, sure am on track! Thanks for asking.
- No, things aren’t turning out the way I planned.
Regardless of how you answered, it’s time to set your course of action for the next 6 months (because who wants to be working hard in December?).
“Uh, I didn’t set business goals for 2015.”
Look, I get it. In Myers-Briggs, I’m an INTP and P stands for “not gonna plan ahead for anything I don’t have to.”
I used to resist planning ahead, setting long-term goals, and committing to a course of action. I could create small victories on the fly—what more could I want?
Turns out, I wanted a lot more. If you’re resistant to set long-term goals or commit to a long-term course of action but you still have ambition informing your vision, I hate to break it to you but it’s time to make a change. You don’t have to over-plan, but you want to action with a particular destination in mind.
Your Next Question: Where do you want to be a year from now? Where do you want your business to be a year from now? What’s it going to take to get there?
Setting your destination helps to set your strategy.
“Yes, sure am on track!”
Congratulations! So am I. I’m exactly where I planned to be. And now that I’m here, I’ve been able to adjust my plan to reach a stretch goal I had in mind but couldn’t quite see the path to.
If you’re right where you want to be, it can be extremely helpful to look a little farther down the field. Maybe you were hoping to kick a field goal at the end of this drive and instead, you’re in position to go for the touch down.
Do you know the course of action you’ll need to get there? Do you have the tools or planning processes in place to make that happen?
Your Next Question: What decisions will help you reach your stretch goal? Is it time to hire some one new? Raise prices? Offer something that’s been on your mind? Cut away deadweight from your business?
Strategy is all about decision-making and you’re in a great place to do it.
“No, things aren’t turning out the way I planned.”
I’ve been there. I’ve created great plans only to have certain variables not go my way.
One of our Quiet Power Strategy™ clients, Jennifer Racioppi, who helps high-performing women create the personal fortitude they need to put in the work, talks a lot about resilience. Resilience is the ability to change course when the going gets tough. It’s the quality you need to spring back up when you get pushed over.
Resilience is hard work.
But it’s so worth it.
If things aren’t going to plan halfway through the year, it’s time to make a commitment to yourself, your business, and your customers to reexamine the plan and adjust it based on the new information you have.
Your Next Question: What course corrections do you need to make?
Whether you haven’t had time to finish the project you thought you could, whether deals didn’t close as easily as you thought they should, whether all your pitching for media mentions and guest posts as fallen flat, you’ve got new data to work with. Take what you’ve learned and change course.
No matter how you answered…
No matter how you answered, it’s probably time to get some support in reaching your business goals. I’ll be opening pre-registration for the Fall session of Quiet Power Strategy (my hands-on business coaching program) in a couple of weeks. It might be exactly what you need to get where you’re going.
Of course, you can find support lots of place: colleagues, friends, mentors, and team members. Just don’t try to go it alone, okay?
You don’t get where you’re going (whether you’ve just decided where that is, you’re picking out a stretch goal, or whether you’re changing course) without help.
