It’s January, a time when individuals and organizations set goals for the coming year. As I’ve said for decades, all good performance begins with clear goals. That’s why Spencer Johnson and I decided that One Minute Goal Setting should be the first secret of The New One Minute Manager®.
Setting clear goals is just the beginning, however. Most of us have had the experience of starting strong on our goals in January, only to find that we’ve lost momentum by February. In this blog, I’m going to share four tools that will help you stay on track and achieve your 2025 goals.
Tool #1: Name Your Desired Destination
Where do you and your team want to go this year? If you don’t have a clear picture of where you are going and why it’s important, you’re unlikely to get anywhere. I always love the example from Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, when Alice says to the Cheshire Cat, “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?” The smiling cat responds, “That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.” When Alice says she doesn’t much care, the Cheshire Cat replies, “Then it doesn’t much matter.”
If, like Alice, you don’t really care about where you’re going, you’re unlikely to accomplish much. On the other hand, if each of your goals has a clear, compelling purpose—one that moves you—it’s far more likely to be attained.
Make sure that the goals matter to you, your team, and your organization. Do the goals support your vision and values? What will be the benefits of completing these goals? To motivate yourself and your team, create a compelling picture of a future in which your goals have been achieved.
Encourage your people to create their own job-related goals. Direct reports often know more about their jobs than their managers do. Let people know what success would look like, and allow them to play an active role in determining how to get there.
Finally, make sure that the goals are aligned with organizational objectives. When people understand how their work contributes to what their organization is trying to achieve, goals come alive. From the big picture viewpoint, work that might seem inconsequential takes on new meaning.
This is beautifully illustrated in a story about the great fire that destroyed St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. During the rebuilding, the architect approached three bricklayers and asked one question: "What are you doing?"
The first bricklayer replied, "I am a bricklayer. I’m laying bricks to feed my family." The second bricklayer replied, “I am a builder. I'm building a wall." The third bricklayer—the most productive of the three—saw the big picture. He replied, "I am a cathedral builder. I am building a great cathedral."
Tool #2: Make Sure You Have Direction and Support
One of the main reasons that the great majority of New Year’s resolutions fail is because people don’t have the direction and support they need to see their goals through to completion. Don’t go it alone or leave your direct reports to go it alone. Collaborate on your goals to stay on track and hold each other accountable.
One of the best tools for successful goal accomplishment is SLII®. Using this model, you and your direct reports can diagnose the development level on each goal and see what is needed to accomplish it. An Enthusiastic Beginner who is new to a task needs lots of specific direction from a mentor or expert. A Disillusioned Learner whose initial enthusiasm has waned needs coaching and encouragement. A Capable But Cautious Performer who has made progress but still has doubts needs someone to bolster their confidence and ask empowering questions. A Self-Reliant Achiever who is crushing their goals needs someone to challenge them to aim even higher.
Tool #3: Track Progress and Share Updates
To maintain momentum toward goal accomplishment, track progress and share regular updates with your team. Too often, goals are created and filed away, not to be referenced again until it’s time for a performance review.
I recommend that you review your own goals daily to stay focused and move toward achieving them. Make sure that you review goals with each of your team members at least once every two weeks. This gives you the opportunity to provide feedback and cheer people on.
By tracking goals and sharing updates, you can hold yourself and others accountable. Assure yourself and your team that setbacks are normal and part of the process. You can adjust the steps toward goal accomplishment as new information is revealed and new circumstances arise.
Find a tracking system that works for you. Advances in technology have given us so many useful tracking tools—planners, apps, and calendar reminders—many of which we can access right from our phones. Our company uses performance management software that helps everyone set goals, monitor progress, and stay on track.
Tool #4: Celebrate Milestones
I don’t believe that work should be an endless grind. When we reach a milestone along our journey to a meaningful goal, it should be celebrated!
For example, when our organization bounced back from severe financial losses and salary reductions after 9/11, we didn’t just go on with business as usual. We celebrated everyone’s sacrifices and hard work by taking the whole company to Hawaii. Not only did that celebration strengthen relationships and bring us joy, it also helped us move forward with renewed energy and focus.
Be sure to celebrate the small wins, too: the customer problem solved, the report written, the presentation completed. Celebrating milestones along the way reminds you and your team that you’re making headway and motivates everyone to keep going. When we laugh together, share stories, and mark moments in time, we’re honoring of one of my favorite sayings:
Life is a very special occasion—don’t miss it!
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Editor's Note: Would you like to learn more about setting and achieving goals in 2025? Join us for a complimentary webinar on January 28. The event is free. Learn more here!
Breaking the Goal-Setting Barrier: Strategies for Clarity, Alignment, and Growth
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