In my last article, we talked about developing a strategic plan, and what it can do for your business. In this article, we want to switch gears and talk about setting both personal and business goals. Have you ever given goal setting much thought? We’ve all heard that you should write your goals down and look at them every day a couple of times a day so that you can focus on making them happen.
Have you set both personal and business goals? Is there really a need to have a goal or goals? Does writing your goals down really help make them happen? Should goals be long term or short term? What’s necessary to have a goal? What else should you know about setting goals? Are there any secrets that you should know?
Goals need to be audacious! Don’t set wimpy, safe, little goals because they don’t excite anybody. If you are old enough to remember September 12, 1962, (if not, you’ve heard the speech) you no doubt will remember, President John F. Kennedy’s speech at Rice University in Houston, TX. “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.” In 1962 we put a man in orbit. Our rockets had improved and weren’t in danger of blowing up on the launch pad. Can you imagine a more audacious goal at the time? Could we even do it again now, or go to Mars?
Do your goals excite you? You must aim for the stars. Your goals must force you out of your comfort zone to achieve them, and they must make people question your sanity. In the 60’s the thought of going to the moon was crazy. What would you like to do that is a big stretch from where you are now to where you want to be in a year or two? Secret number one, make your goals big, outrageous and audacious!
One of my goals is to write a book. I’m writing a book titled “Navigating the Maze: Secrets to Succeeding in Business without Breaking Your Budget.” My book’s ISBN number is 978-1-935586-85-2 and its Library of Congress control number is 2012906847 and it is going to happen. I have a publisher and the book is due out this summer. I am working my way through my first goal – “to write a book.” My second goal is to sell 30,000 books the first year and become a bestselling author. My third goal is to book four speaking engagements per month and to sell my consulting services across the U.S. and Canada. Of course, there’s the money part in all of this too. You need money to live on and you might as well do something that you enjoy while you are making it. What gets you excited; what makes your juices flow; what do you want to accomplish that will make you stretch and grow to achieve your goals?
The next part of goal setting is the “how” part of the equation. How are you going to make your goals happen? How am I going to sell 30,000 books? That’s the amazing thing about your mind; once you give it a task it begins to work on the problem. When I first set that goal I didn’t have a clue how to do it, but now I’m starting to have people approach me saying, “My organization has a bookstore, or suggested reading list, would you like me to have it list your book when it’s printed.” Of course! Yes! Great! How many doors will open for you, once you set your goals and you start working towards them? Let the power of your mind work for you to help you bring your goals to fruition. Secret number two, use the power of your mind to show you how to achieve your goal.
President Kennedy didn’t keep his goal of going to the moon by the end of the decade to himself, he told the world! That was an audacious move. Next he had to get congress to appropriate the money to fund the endeavor with the world watching to see if America would fail or succeed. Share your goals publicly and be brave. The Yankees were playing St. Louis in the 1926 World Series when Babe Ruth received word of a seriously ill 11-year-old boy, named Johnny Sylvester, who was a big Yankee’s fan. Babe Ruth tells Johnny that he would hit a home run for him in the fourth game of the Series, a series where he hasn’t hit any home runs to that point. During the fourth game, he hits three home runs. Follow their lead and tell the world what you intend to do. The world will take note and hold you accountable. Allowing others to hold you accountable, forces you to perform. Secret number three, tell the world your goals and let it hold you accountable.
Put a date on your goals, you need to know when you are going to reach your goal. President Kennedy, set the date as December 31, 1969, the end of the decade. America landed a man on the moon, July 11, 1969, meeting the goal set by the late President John F. Kennedy. What would have happened, if President Kennedy had just said we want to go to the moon, but never set a date? Would we have ever achieved his goal? What would have happened if Babe Ruth didn’t specify the fourth game of the World Series to hit his home run for little Johnny Sylvester? The date makes it real. It gives your mind an endpoint on the timeline, and it creates a sense of urgency. Secret number four, set a date, and you create a sense of urgency.
Finally, write your goals down and review them regularly. Let your eyes imprint your words on your brain so your mind can see your goals and make them reality. The process of writing your goals down on paper, or typing them into your computer, involves your whole person, mind, body, and soul. Secret number five, write down your goals and carry them wherever you go. When you have a spare moment, take them out, read them, commit them to memory, and open yourself to possibilities to achieve your goals.
My website contains links to all the marketing articles I’ve written for the HVAC-Talk Newsletter. If you want your marketing efforts pay big dividends, contact a marketing professional. I’m available to assist you in all of your marketing efforts. If you need a branding consultation, a complete strategic marketing plan, help with marketing strategy, or management services, call or send an email to discuss your needs.
Andy Fracica is president and CEO of Fracica Enterprises, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in marketing, PR, social media, and lead generation strategy. He has over 30 years of sales, marketing, and product management experience in the heating ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) industry. He concentrates on helping companies deliver their message in an ever increasingly crowded market by teaching businesses to do more with less ($). Contact him at 260-338-4554, [email protected] or visit the Fracica Enterprises, Inc. website.