Goals Race to the Finish Line

remember as a leader how eager I was to set annual goals. I felt good about the work I wanted to achieve both professionally and personally. After my initial goal discussion with my leader, I was on fire! I looked for resources, courses, and other opportunities to start working on my annual goals.

Soon afterwards, I got distracted by the nuances of my day, so much so that time moved faster than my attention to the big picture. Before I knew it, I was in the 3rd Quarter of the year before I realized I had lost sight of my deliverables. Can you relate? Think about what you have accomplished so far this year. Are you on or off target? Were you also distracted by your day-to-day responsibilities and combusting “fires” that you lost focus on the big picture? You know, the goals that offer the greatest ROI on your work and others relying on you? If this is you, keep reading.

I think we would agree that if you are reading this article, you are in somewhat of a mess and need to figure out how you are going to run to the finish line and achieve as much as you can with little time left in the year. I have some suggestions for you to consider, however, this is not a one size fits all approach. You will need to use your creative abilities to figure out your best plan forward. The bottom line is you can’t go back in time and fix what should have happened throughout the year, so the focus must be on what you can do now, and later plan how you will avoid this happening next year. Here are some thoughts for consideration:

1. Assess the Big Priorities and Focus on Achieving Those

At this point, your attention needs to be on accomplishing the top one or two goals that have the greatest ROI on your career and others.  I suggest taking a day or two to evaluate what you have accomplished, what’s outstanding, and determine what goals you can realistically achieve at this point.  Here are some questions for consideration:

• What still needs to be accomplished?

• In order of impact, which goals have the greatest ROI to me? To those relying on me? 

• What is possible at this point?

• What is the impact to me and others if I do not complete certain goals?

• What goals am I going to focus on at this point? Why these goals?

• What resources will I need to achieve these goals? How will I access those resources?

• What professional/personal sacrifices am I willing to make to accomplish these goals?

2. Create a Finish Line Plan

Now that you have determined the goals you will focus on and what it will take to achieve them, you will need a solid plan to get them accomplished. Here are some thoughts to consider before taking action:

• Review your list of resources and gather them asap, including obtaining any needed documents or other data necessary to achieve your goals. Additionally, reach out to your network for support (i.e., peers, direct reports, accountability partner, etc.), and be specific about your needs, being certain to consider their priorities as well. Your interaction with them must be collaborative so they don’t feel burdened by your request for assistance. Be sure to include your leader. It may feel uncomfortable to have this discussion but keeping them in the loop and garnering their support is crucial to your performance outcomes.

• Schedule time at work or home asap to put together a realistic but innovative plan that provides the greatest opportunity for success at this point, especially now because you have the resources and support needs lined up. Be sure to make the plan SMART.

• Ask one or two highly skilled and accountable individuals to review your plan and share feedback with you. Make certain to carefully consider their suggestions and adjust your plan accordingly.

• Re-arrange your professional and personal priorities accordingly and engage those impacted by explaining why you need to set boundaries around your time. The more clearly you communicate your needs, the better your chances of gaining their support.

• Act immediately! There is no time to waste at this point, so do not hesitate to put your plan into motion.

3. Monitor your performance

I personally am not a fan of micro-management, but you will need to participate in this behavior. That means, micro-managing yourself! I also advise soliciting an accountability partner to monitor your progress. Here are additional actions for consideration to achieve your modified goal plan:

• Pre-schedule a weekly check-in meeting on your calendar three days from the date you execute your plan and every week thereafter until the end of the year. This time should be used for self-check-ins to evaluate your performance, meet with your accountability partner and others critical to your success. I suggest a mid-weekday check-in to allow for course corrections before the end of the week. Remember, you are micro-managing yourself, not others, so be mindful of how you interact with those supporting you.

•  Stay encouraged no matter what you experience. Your goal is to achieve your modified goals. It may feel exhaustive, but it’s worth the energy and effort to increase your chances of finishing your plan. 

•  Evaluate your results at the end of the year and get prepared for your annual review or whatever method your company uses to evaluate your performance. Be ready to highlight how you adjusted your behaviors to achieve current goals and take responsibility for underperformance. You will also want to be prepared to discuss how you will prevent this from happening again in the future. 

As you run to the finish line, your modified plan should focus on achieving the goals that offer the greatest ROI to you and those relying on you to get the job done. You will need to micro-manage yourself and solicit the support of others to increase your chances for success. If these suggestions do not work for you, no worries. Use this information as a springboard to customize a plan that will work. At the end of the day, you have got to figure something out if you want to increase your opportunities for goal achievements by the end of the year.

Finally, accept accountability for your actions. Even if they were unintended, you missed the mark, so be prepared to act, and own your performance. In my opinion, it is better to make it to the finish line accomplishing one or two goals major goals than make it with three or four unfinished or below par results. And for goodness’s sake, do not let this happen again.