Goal Setting for Business

Goal Setting for Business

To many, goal setting is the absolute first step in achieving business success. Before you set out on your business journey you should decide where you are going. From one perspective the only way you can achieve business success is to set your business goals first. Because your business goals will help you set your business direction and they will let you know when you have arrived. In the words of Russell Ackoff:

The thing to do with the future is not to forecast it but to create it. The objective of planning is to design your desirable future and invent ways to bring it about.

Goal Setting is crucial to business success. The approach to business goal setting varies between a large business and an owner operated business. This page will concentrate more on the Goal Setting for owner operated businesses. (You can also see goal setting for career)

For owner operated businesses the real starting point with business goal setting is personal goal setting. Your business goals need to be supportive of your personal goals because if your business and personal goals are not compatible not only will you have trouble achieving your goals but the incongruence will consume enormous energy and create discomfort.

You are likely to find that your business is one of your key vehicles for achieving your personal goals. So, before you can shape the goals for your business you need to understand your personal goals and understand what the business needs to do to help you achieve your personal goals. That way, you can maximise your returns from the business – both in financial terms and in non financial terms.

It is likely that your personal goals will cover a balanced portion of your life. For instance you may have:

Health goals
Fitness goals
Career goals
Wealth goals
Relationships goals

And these goals need to support one an another.

Goal Setting Steps include:

Goal decision
Goal documentation
Evidence of goal success
The first step needed to achieve your goal
How does each goal impact on your balanced lifestyle
Removing blockages

For more advanced goal setting you may also include such tools as visualization and goal installation.

Business Planning is a valuable way forward for identifying and documenting your business goals and then working out the strategies and actions to achieve these goals. It also provides the mechanisms for measuring your goal achievement progress.

Your may break your overall goals down into such categories as:

Financial goals
Human resources goals
Client goals
Product goals
Community contribution goals

Ultimately your goals will be summarised in financial terms in a model called a Financial Map. At its simplest, a Financial Map are your budgets. More useful Financial Maps are typically set up on spreadsheets. They are models that enable you to change your key inputs and to see the impact on your overall performance. Not only does this help you set your best strategy mix to achieve your goals but it also helps you determine the reasonableness of your goals. If you consider that you would benefit from more help with goal setting we would love to play a more active part in helping you achieve your goals.

If you would like to know more about goal setting:

Download the Goal Achievement Program Checklist

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