What does a business most need in order to survive? Well, that’s the million dollar question, and the reason for much confusion and uncertainty in the business world. And for good reason. The answer isn’t exactly clear.
Certainly, a business will require startup capital, the right skillsets and connections in order to thrive, a good and adept approach to marketing, likely the services of another company to set up office space, install industrial lighting, or supply the goods being sold.
For all of the material factors that contribute to the success or failure of a business, however, there’s a good argument to be made that the goals of the company — abstract things in and of themselves — are really what lies at the heart of the matter.
Here are some ways you can use goals effectively in order to help your business thrive.
Set grand “destiny” goals to direct everything else
If someone were to ask you a question like; “what’s your greatest goal in life”, or “if you had a genie in a magic lamp, what would you wish for?” your answer to that question would likely be something a lot more ambitious than “I want this margin of profit growth in the next quarter”.
Some goals are fairly immediate and practical, and are used to structure the course of office planning and prioritising until they are met. Other goals, however, are far more grandiose in nature and pretty much exist to shape the broader office culture, and the very purpose of the business itself, rather than simply directing the “small stuff”.
We could call these kinds of goals your “grand destiny” goals. They will typically be hard to put a reliable timestamp on, and they will operate almost as talismans or ideals to aspire towards. That’s not to say that you won’t be actively trying to achieve these goals, merely that in order to achieve them, you’ll typically need to treat them as large-scale guiding principles.
An example of a “destiny” goal like this could be something like; “I will run the most widely beloved restaurant chain in the USA, with branches in every state.”
This identifies a couple of clear priorities in terms of the corporate values you should adopt. For one thing; customer satisfaction, and the quality of the customer experience, are absolutely crucial, as is rapport. For another thing, expansion is a top priority.
These destiny goals are long term, and can be used as affirmations in order to condition your subconscious mind to stay on the right track.
Use smaller S.M.A.R.T. goals as waypoints along the way
While your destiny goal will direct the values of your business, and life, in a particular way and with a particular end in mind, you should rely on smaller S.M.A.R.T. goals along the way to ensure that you’re heading in the right direction on a consistent basis, and are hitting all the right milestones at the right times.
S.M.A.R.T. goals may include things like income or expansion targets to be achieved by a certain point in time. The acronym S.M.A.R.T. stands for “Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely” and described goals which are not overly grandiose but which are, instead, easily trackable and which relate directly to an easily measurable desired outcome in your business, by a particular point in time.
Using S.M.A.R.T. goals saves you from many of the pitfalls of more fly-by-night goal setting arrangements. You are unlikely, for example, to feel confused about whether or not you have achieved your goal or at least made substantial progress towards doing so. You are less likely to find that you’ve dramatically over-shot and set yourself a goal which you can’t conceivably meet in the allocated timespan (although this does still happen from time to time).
Backup your goals with routine automated systems
Scott Adams, in his much acclaimed book “How to Fail at Everything and Still Win Big”, writes very positively about the role of systems. In fact, he goes so far as to argue that goals are “for losers”, with systems being for winners, and clearly juxtaposes the two.
While that is one approach to take, it is unlikely to work particularly well for an entrepreneur or business owner. Goals play an important role in giving structure to your professionals efforts and endeavours, but that’s not to say that systems aren’t still very important and positive things to get a handle on.
A system is essentially something like a habit; it’s a sequence of behaviour that you act out routinely. In regards to the desire to become a good artist, for example, a “system” might be “I will practice drawing for an hour every single day.”
The key point here is that the behaviour isn’t contingent on outside factors. The aspiring artist isn’t drawing in sporadic bursts up until the date of an art contest, they’re just drawing daily, because that’s their system. Such a system is likely to yield consistent and enduring results.
Reinforcing your goals in business with positive systems in this manner can ensure that you continuously move in a productive direction, even in the absence of pressing deadlines or immediate need.
Schedule in regular reviews to assess your progress
Even the best goals can be superseded or may become irrelevant in the light of revised decisions, shifting priorities, or a different set of realities on the ground.
While goals can play a vitally positive role in helping you to organise your business and direct it in a positive manner, sticking to flawed or defunct goals can be a recipe for absolute disaster.
To prevent yourself from falling into this trap, you should be sure to schedule in regular reviews in order to assess your progress and adjust your course going forward. These reviews could take the form of you having a meeting with your senior team members for an hour or two each week, or could simply involve you — as a small business owner — dedicating Sunday afternoons to planning, strategising and reflecting.