A vision is great! We start out each year with a compelling goal. But, sooner or later. That same vision feels like cemented shoes that keep us stuck.
What do we do? We come up with another vision. We cast it to our team and go through the same journey of excitement, exhaustion, frustration, and exchange.
Why do we do this? Each year, we have the opportunity to revise our goals to move us forward. But, instead of going toward our future. We end up chasing our tails searching for “inspiration”.
Maybe it’s an American thing. We want the American dream without having to face the dullness of walking the journey.
So, how do we escape this monotonous hamster wheel? Here are seven things that you should do if you want to actually meet your goals in 2023. Let’s get you started on this journey.
1. Work As a Team to meet your goals
It’s not easy being a team player.
It sounds wonderful. You can pat yourself on the back. Hold your head up high. And brag about your incredible charisma and charm. But, no one tells you how darn hard it is to round up the troops and convince people to get things done.
Inspiration is easy. Implementation requires you to actually be good at compelling people to get to work.
If I’m being honest. I would rather inspire.
I love stepping into a room and seeing people excited to work together to fulfill a vision. What I don’t like is having to keep them inspired when that vision becomes drudgery. And it ALWAYS does.
You know what I’m talking about. That moment where you still have to wear a plastered on smile, encourage your team, and tell them that the exhaustion and frustration are worth it in the end.
Working with a team requires you to understand the room.
It also requires you to listen and learn more than you share.
Invite your team to disagree, discuss their opinions, and direct parts of your company with their own ideas.
Remember, success only happens when people feel like they’re a part of the journey, not pawns for your goal.
2. Know Who You Are and Embrace It
As an ENTJ, delegating is not the easiest thing for me to do. I’m not a fan of micromanaging. But, it takes time to know your team enough to divvy out tasks.
It’s not just about knowing their talents. It’s also about understanding their EQ, their enneagram, their home life, and their personality.
Now, don’t beat yourself up if this seems out of your wheelhouse. It’s not the easiest for me either. But, for someone who seeks out productivity, I’ve learned that I can’t reach my goals without taking the time to understand and invest in people.
Take notice of your strengths and weaknesses. If you love sitting down and lending a listening ear, then embrace that and implement coffee time into your weekly schedule.
If you’re not a conversationalist, then meet in groups and theme your talks. You can even script out your time to make you more comfortable while building community.
Success happens when we work together. But, most importantly, it occurs when we work from a place of authenticity. Be yourself and invite your team to express their own personality.
I get it. 2021 is looming around the corner and you’re desperate to format your next twelve months. But, let me give you a piece of advice. If you only create a game plan that works for you, don’t be surprised when your team doesn’t connect with your mission.
Diversity is not only beneficial; it’s not an option.
Not everyone will mimic your perspective. This is what you want.
If you’re looking to meet your 2023 goals, then you need to surround yourself with people who see the holes in your vision and how to bring it to fruition better than you.
3. Success Is Greater Than Your Perspective
Chess is a great game. But no one wants to feel like they are a pawn in your great scheme.
Most employees want to be more than automatons who wait for your orders.
Think about why people joined your organization. What talents did they brag about during their interview? What areas of your company did they want to help shape? If you go back to the basics, so to speak, you’ll be able to create spaces for innovation, creativity, and collaboration.
Remember, these people joined your organization to make their mark and use their talents. They need space to create.
Now, this open-concept style of leadership might seem a bit foreign. Especially if you’re used to a hierarchical management structure. But, if most of your employees are Millennials or Generation Z, you can’t go wrong with making room in your organization for cognitive diversity.
4. Value Different Voices
When people know that their voice is valued, they invest their time and their ideas to benefit the mission of the company.
People want to be more than employees who enact the desires of hierarchical leadership. Most individuals want to help shape the organization. They want to be a part of the ideation before they serve on implementation.
I know what you’re thinking. Ideation sounds like something that you would hear on The Magic School Bus. Ms. Frizzle might have been made famous for her out-of-the-box thinking, but thousands of CEOS are revising their plans and creating space for ideas to flourish. They’re even developing teams whose sole responsibility is to simply dream.
Now, this might seem like a waste of time. But, when people are allowed to flesh out ideas; they’re also invited to delve into the pros and cons of each possibility.
When companies purposefully create space for cognitive dissonance and creativity. They save money and time because they learn from the opinions and perspectives of their team and invite their input to the table before the final launch.
5. Invest in Your Team’s Education
The world has changed. There are new technologies and systems available to streamline operations. If you want your organization to remain competitive, then you need a team that understands the latest trends and techniques.
It might seem out of budget for a small business, but investing in continuing education for both leadership and employees is a must for any organization.
You don’t need to send everyone to expensive universities, either. You can provide subscriptions to online courses or invite professionals in the industry for lectures and Q&A sessions.
6. Focus on Empathy
Forget data-driven decision-making, which has been a trend in the last decade. Now, you need to make sure that your decisions are backed by empathy and a mindful approach.
People don’t just want their opinions heard; they want to be understood. And data-driven decisions often miss the mark when it comes to being human-centered.
Empathy is more than understanding; it’s about considering how others feel and how a decision might affect them.
7. Set Attainable Goals
It’s great to be ambitious, but it’s also important to set goals that can actually be reached. Too often, leaders jump the gun with their desire to reach the stars. However, they don’t consider the challenges and budgetary factors that might prevent them from reaching their goals.
Be mindful when you set out on a new project or initiative. Consider what your team can realistically accomplish in the allotted time frame and with the resources available to them.
If you want your employees to reach their goals and resolutions this year, make sure they have attainable expectations and targets to aim for.
Final Thoughts On How to Meet Your Goals
Successful people understand that collaboration compels productivity.
Think about it, when you consider the success of Facebook, Amazon, or Google, you look at their corporate culture. You don’t necessarily think about their stock numbers. At least not at first.
Now, don’t get me wrong. These giants of industry have created a surge of money for their investors. But, when you look at the why behind their success, the majority are pinnacles within the corporate world, because they invested in their employees. They took the time to figure out what makes people tick and then created an environment that was conducive to innovation and creativity.
They say you get what you pay for. Well, you also get what you invest your time into. If you want to succeed, you need to do more than create a game plan. You need to create a corporate culture where everyone can help shape the next level of your company.
Allow people to dream and make sure they understand how their actions align with the goals of your organization. In other words, help them see how their role is necessary for the company’s success. By doing that, you create an atmosphere where everyone can flourish and reach their potential in 2023 and beyond.
Good luck!
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