This article was based on episode 232 of The Modern Manager podcast. To hear this episode, and many more like it, you can subscribe to The Modern Manager Podcast on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon, and Stitcher. Members of the Modern Manager community get access to Hilary’s ROCK-IT goal setting workshop (live or recorded!). Never miss a worksheet, episode or article: subscribe to Mamie’s newsletter.
Move over, SMART goals. This year, it’s all about ROCK-IT Goals. To relaunch ourselves towards a brighter future, Hilary DeCesare, an award-winning business expert and founder of The Relaunch Co, suggests we rethink how we set and manage goals. Hilary combines insights in neuropsychology with her years of business success (as one of the first women to create a quarter of a billion dollars in revenue!) to guide us in creating goals that can really move us to new heights this year. While any time is a good time to set goals, the upcoming new calendar year presents the perfect opportunity to plan for a bright future.
CHANGE SMART INTO SMARTIE GOALS
Most managers are familiar with SMART (simple, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time bound) goals. While this rule of thumb is helpful, Hilary suggests adding two more crucial ideas to success goal creation; Identity and Energy.
Identity: Know Who You Need to Be
We need to understand the characteristics of the person we need to be in order to make our goals happen. How we think about ourselves impacts our emotions and behaviors profoundly. Those thoughts repeatedly over time lead to ingrained beliefs. To relaunch yourself in a new direction or to take on new goals effectively, stop and think about what you need to believe about yourself in order to get the work you want done. Consider what beliefs and actions will build that necessary confidence.
Energy: Elevate Your Frequency
Energy is about making the goals exciting, something that will motivate you to take new actions even if they’re uncomfortable. And here’s where Hilary says we need to get “scazy.” If you don’t want to keep plodding along, you need the courage to think BIG. Take a step back and consider what you really want, even if it feels scary or crazy (or as Hilary puts it, scazy). Know where you’re starting from and where you want to go. Then embrace that scazy feeling to lift up your energy because the energy we get from our empowered beliefs and goals will elevate us to work at a higher level that others will resonate with. Strength leads to greater strength.
BREAK DOWN BIG GOALS
It can be intimidating to write down a big, scazy goal because we don’t know how on earth we’ll get there. Sometimes, it feels so far away that it’s not worth writing down. Don’t be fooled by these emotions. Once you’ve written down a goal, it’s time to start breaking it down.
Work Backwards and Forwards
Once you know your endpoint twelve months from now, work backwards to set goals in the short term. First, divide your year into quarters. Look at the first quarter, or 90 days, and think about what scazy goal you’d like to reach by that point. Then, keep working backwards. What are your 30 day ROCK-IT goals within that first quarter? What about your weekly goals for the first month and daily goals for the first week?
Once the initial plan is set, it’s time to build upwards. Each day, you set new goals based on the weekly goal. At the start of the next week, you can determine a weekly goal based on the monthly goal. And with the new month comes a new goal based on your quarterly goal. No matter where you are in the year, your goals are clear and you’re moving in the right direction.
Brainstorm Then Decide
With all of these goals, it can feel overwhelming to figure out where to start. A good trick Hilary shares is to write down a list of all the possible actions you could take to reach a goal (weekly, monthly, quarterly). Then see what pops out at you. Let the actions that stand out guide your decisions about what actions to take. Remember to think first about what you want to achieve before thinking through how to get there.
IT ALL ADDS UP
The beauty of reimagining who we are is that even if we don’t hit our goals, we’re working from a place of power. Your mindset and beliefs drive action which in turn lead to accomplishing great things. Small actions towards your daily three ROCK-IT goals leads to reaching new heights over time.
As you guide your team to setting their New Year’s ROCK-IT Goals, make sure they don’t take on too much too soon. That’s the surest way to burn out within the first month. Teach them to think ahead to where they want to go. Then work backwards to what they want to accomplish quarterly, monthly, weekly, and daily. Keep the goals simple and always remind your team that it’s not just about what we want to do, it’s about who we believe we are. We succeed when we believe we are the type of people who can succeed. This empowered energy will launch us towards reaching the most scazy dreams we could ever imagine.
KEEP UP WITH HILARY
Website: https://therelaunchco.com/
Business Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheReLaunchCo/
Personal Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hilary.howarddecesare
Business Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/therelaunchco/?hl=en
Personal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hilarydecesare/?hl=en
Get access to Hilary’s free webinar, ROCK-IT Your Way to Success in 2023, when you become a member of the Modern Manager community at themodernmanager.com/join.
This article was based on episode 232 of The Modern Manager podcast. To hear this episode, and many more like it, you can subscribe to The Modern Manager Podcast on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon, and Stitcher. Never miss a worksheet, episode or article: subscribe to Mamie’s newsletter.