#285: 4 Reasons why we failed to meet our goals this year, and how to avoid it for 2023
What was the hit rate on meeting your goals for 2022? Were you part of the 83% tat didn't even set a goal? or the 14% that didn't write it down?
As we draw close to the end of the year, many of you are just now pulling out your list of goals and objectives you set in January. How did you do? Don't be upset if you failed to meet or exceed your goal. Nearly 80% of New Year's resolutions are broken by February 1st.
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Not meeting a goal? Try problem-solving
Before you beat yourself up and double down for 2023, let's tap the brakes for a moment. Then, just as you would do a deep dive into a project that didn't go well, let's do an after-action analysis of your goal-setting process.
Start asking the tough questions; What did you do right? What did you do wrong? Did you abandon the goal throughout the year? Why did you do that?
4-Reasons why we failed to meet goals
1. Lack of a clear plan.
You need to have a specific goal and map out a clear path to get there. There are several methods of purpose setting, such as SMART Goals, Ziglar Process, Bryan Tracy, and dozens more. Each one of them will work if you follow the plan. Find one that works and is easy to implement. I fancy the SMART Process:
Specific: Increase the chances that you can accomplish your goals by ensuring they're well-defined. Determine the who, what, where, when, and why.
Measurable: Develop criteria for measuring progress toward your goals. Detail the key indicators that help you decide if and when you reach your goal by quantifying them.
Achievable: Create goals that are attainable and achievable by ensuring that you have the skills and resources needed to reach the goal.
Realistic: Align your goals with the realities of your circumstances (for example, you can't set a goal to be married by June if you haven't met your partner yet)
Time-based: Give yourself a deadline for reaching your goal to provide a sense of urgency and the opportunity to schedule the steps needed to achieve the goal.
2. Impatience
Your plan needs to be realistic, and you need the patience to work your way up gradually. We become impatient when we only look at the end and how far away we have yet to go. As we wrote a few weeks ago, we want to measure our success backward! So look how far you have come, don't worry about how far you have to go. My favorite quote for impatience, you eat an elephant one bite at a time.
Weight loss is a great example. Let's put a measurable goal out there of 26 pounds lost by the end of the year. That means we need to lose one lb. every two weeks. If after eight weeks of dieting, exercise, and saying no to those warm chocolate chip cookies, you have only lost 3.5 lbs, you see that you are still 22 pounds or more away! It's not worth it!
If you look backward, you see that you have lost 3 ½ pounds and are only ½ pound off your schedule. So you are 13.5% of the way to the goal. If you are tracking it daily, you may see that your body is losing weight faster than it was 2-weeks ago.
Suppose you lose patience that quickly, shorten the time. For example, losing ½ pound a week is realistic, so set a 3-month goal of 6-7 pounds.
3. Lack of resilience
If you're too afraid to fail, you won't push your limits and explore the possibilities outside your comfort zone. When you become resilient, you understand that stumbling over a setback is just a lesson learned on the way to achieving your goal.
There are four fatal fears. Not all of these apply to you and your goal setting, but we all have one of these fears. Below is a list of those failures and what each of them means. When you define your specific goal, ensure you are not setting yourself up for one of these fears.
For example, your goal is to get a job at this company. If your number one fear is rejection, let's try to rewrite this goal. What specific skills or attributes would be necessary for you to get that job at that company? Do you have all of those already, or should you improve yourself before creating those goals? Write your goals out so that they focus on what you can control. As you gain these skills and assets, you become more marketable, and your confidence increases. Why? Because it becomes more realistic that you get that job.
Which of these fears fits you?
Failure: I need to succeed.
Failure is not an option
You only pick battles, work situations, etc., where you are guaranteed to win
Winning is more important than anything else
Being wrong: I need to be right.
Avoid situations where your intelligence might be tested or challenged
Never admit that you made a mistake or are wrong
Stay within the bounds of what you know
Rejection: I need to be accepted.
Never want to challenge anyone or anything
Never want to upset anyone or rock the boat
Only seek work, friends, and activities where acceptance is the norm
Emotional discomfort: I need emotional comfort.
Never be vulnerable
Never look foolish
Never ask for help because it's a sign of weakness
Never allow yourself into situations where you may be embarrassed
4. Leaving it halfway
Stopping or ending the process before it is complete is easy to address. There is one key reason you gave up; it didn't matter to you. Why are you trying to lose that 20+ pounds? Why do you want to buy a bigger house? Why do you need to save more money?
If your why isn't big enough to keep you going, you will stop as soon as there is any friction. I've written numerous times about having a strong why understanding of what it is. What is your purpose? Why does this goal support your drive? If you haven't found your purpose, your purpose is to find one!
If you don't clearly define your why, and it isn't compelling enough to get you on that treadmill at 5 am, then more than likely, you won't meet that goal.
Before you dive into the process, make sure you are using one that works. If you met all our goals, and have a proven process, congratulations. You are among the minority if you even set goals, let alone write them down:
Surveys of the general population have shown that 83% of respondents don't have goals, 14% had plans but not in writing, and only 3% had written goals. Research has shown that you are 42% more likely to achieve your goals if they are written down.
At the Kole Performance Group, we help you work through the process and become your accountability partner throughout the process. It’s hard work today, but it will improve your tomorrow!
If you are looking for an accountability partner for you or even your entire executive team, connect with us to find out how we can work together to make 2023 your best year ever! Let’s meetup for a virtual coffee, so we can review what we have to offer!