Secret Number 6: They go beyond defining goals!
Defining goals as an important step to be successful seems to be obvious. Because it is much easier to find your way when you know where you want to go. Therefore normal managers are great in defining goals such as sales figures, budget targets, etc. But this is not enough – great leaders go beyond defining goals!
They not only define what their goals are, but they also want to know what will be different once they reach them. Because they know that this is the key for their own motivation and the commitment of their employees.
Let me give you a personal example to illustrate:
To know that I want to be more efficient doesn’t have much motivational power for me, but if I find out that I can go home much earlier and spend time with my friends when I am more efficient, then it becomes quite motivating because I know what will be different once I reach my goal.
Therefore let your employees find out and talk with them about the things that will be different afterwards. This not only clarifies where they are going, but also what will expect them when they are there.
Try it out yourself with this exercise from The Powerful Performance Program:
Ask yourself or your employees the following five questions:
- What is your goal?
- What will be different once you reach your goal?
- What will you do differently then?
- How will you be/behave differently?
- How will others realize that you have reached your goal?
Let us know what you found out during and after this exercise and leave a comment.
All the best with going beyond your goals
Dominik Godat
When people come to work with me they are usually very tired and often recovering from a long illness. In our first interview I ask, “if you had all the energy possible, what would you be doing with your life?” As a health and wellness coach, I feel it is my responsibility to empower the people I work with not to rescue or mother them but to assist them in finding a new positive direction where they are the center of their healing process. When I get the picture of what their new life is going to look like, how they are going to feel then I can explain how their personal nutritional program is going to fit within their new life. This exercise keeps my clients on track as they progress during our time together.
Thank you Allison for your comment. I really like your question. Can you tell us more about the usefulness of this question for your clients? What have you discovered so far? And have you tried going beyond your question and asking them “what will/would be better then” or “what will/would you do differently”?
Dominik your thoughts on leadership are truly inspiring. As a student and a practitioner of leadeship the approach adopted by you to help build leaders seems to be spot on.
I also liked the Grace Allison’s comments on how she tunes in to the problems of her clients so that her advice fits in their mindsets.
You may wish to read visit my blog where I have some posts of leadership. http://dilipnaidu.wordpress.com/ Regards.
Hi Dominik,
I agree with your thoughts. The other way of putting it is, as a leader we must define the goals and let the people in their individual capacity know what they will gain by attaining those goals. If a leader can show and explain what difference will it make to the individual, they get motivated and focused towards the attainment. These focused energies collectively lead to the success.
For individuals, it is important to know WHAT IS THERE FOR ME IN IT?
Puneet
I completely agree with you Puneet!