Monthly Archives: February 2023

There is something amazing that occurs when people set personal or professional goals and achieve those goals. Individuals become more confident in their ability to reach for something bigger and better. They gain self-awareness of their abilities, which is often a stumbling block for trying new things.

Businesses often look at goal setting as a measurable activity to help employees at all levels to continue to grow. In some cases, goal setting is rather arbitrary, and employees often feel it is simply a hoop they have to jump through to get a good performance evaluation.

To understand the benefit of creating and achieving goals, consider the following benefits and long-term outcomes of the process.

Personally Meaningful Goals 

The leader should encourage team members to set meaningful goals. These are not always the KPIs listed on the performance evaluation, although those are also important from a business perspective.

When employees create a personal goal, they become accountable to themselves for achieving that goal. They are motivated to obtain the skills, knowledge, expertise, or experiences because it is personal and meaningful. Goals that are highly desired are also highly motivating, and people who are motivated are more engaged in all aspects of life, including their work.

A Sense of Accomplishment

Taking on something you want to accomplish and seeing success is an uplifting experience. This is true if you are learning a new process at work or learning to cook for the first time. Setting a goal and seeing the progress made toward achieving that goal builds self-confidence and a sense of accomplishment.

Improved Optimism 

Over time, it can be easy to focus on things that did not work out in life. This is a natural human reaction to loss, frustration, or dissatisfaction with life. By setting attainable but still challenging goals, people are able to see their potential again.

Meeting goals creates a path for achieving more in the future. When people are confident they can impact their future, they are more optimistic and more likely to take opportunities that allow them to continue to grow and thrive.

Create Big Goals and Milestones

To help develop optimism, self-confidence, and a sense of accomplishment and pride in reaching your goals, it is important to create a goal structure. This includes the big picture goal or the long-term goal, as well as micro, mini, or milestone goals along the way.

The milestone goals provide a set of stepping stones to reaching the big goal. As you accomplish each milestone, you become more confident and motivated to keep going to meet your long-term goal.

Achieving important goals is a wonderful way to celebrate your personal and professional growth. Take the time to acknowledge your achievement and accomplishments and to evaluate how reaching milestones and big goals have an impact on how you approach new challenges in your life.

The last few years have dramatically changed the business model for many companies. In 2020, most businesses had to discover how to operate with remote workers and management teams, relying increasingly on platforms such as Zoom, Skype, Microsoft Teams, and many others to connect employees to managers and companies to customers.

While this transition has increased the number of small and large businesses offering hybrid or remote work positions, it has also created a very real change for everyone in the company. For almost two years, many employees worked at home, which made it very difficult to separate work and personal time.

Today, more than ever, it is vital to your health and well-being to find the time to disconnect and detach from work and technology. The challenge for many is that technology is also a part of their personal life, from social media platforms to online dating sites and beyond.

Finding downtime free from technology, screens, phones, and similar distractions is a vital part of self-care. Taking time regularly to detach and disconnect offers several benefits that anyone can enjoy.

Helping Your Brain  

Despite a commonly used metaphor, your brain is not a computer. It cannot continue to handle large amounts of information delivered in the form of text, colors, graphics, moving images, and sounds that are constantly changing. To make it worse, people often multi-task, taking in various technology inputs simultaneously.

Think of how often you use a computer, cell phone, tablet, or other devices such as fitness watches and other wearables. More and more often, people turn to these types of devices when they are bored, alone, or even when exercising or enjoying a meal. This bombardment of data keeps the brain working all the time, limiting any downtime and rest it gets to process the information, learn, and even develop new ideas and innovations.

The Disconnected Downtime Benefit

By routinely providing downtime that is free from technology, the brain is able to process experiences. It is this processing that allows the brain to store information in the form of memories in a way that can easily recalled.

The more stimulated the brain is, the less it can learn, categorize, and store information. By creating downtime, people feel less stressed, more creative, and more interested and engaged in the world around them. It can also help relieve symptoms such as brain fog, headaches, eye strain, and even back and neck pains associated with computer and device use.

Building in daily downtime is a great habit to develop. One of the best ways to build in downtime throughout the day is to get outdoors and go for a walk. Leave the cell phone and earbuds behind, and just be mindful of the world around you.

Most people have worked for someone who has been in the same job for an extended period of time. These leaders tend to fall into two categories, those who stopped learning and remained stuck at their current level of knowledge and understanding and those who continued to learn, evolve, and innovate.

The second group of leaders or individuals at any level has the advantage. These individuals have developed a passion for lifelong learning. They are constantly engaged in learning new things, researching possibilities, and responding to changes in the industry, process, or technology.

One of the techniques these lifelong learners have mastered is the ability to see the world through a beginner’s mind. A beginner’s mind does not hold to existing ideas and opinions as if they are the best and only possibility. Instead, a beginner’s mindset looks at everything as a unique idea that is neither good nor bad but simply another option to consider.

This is not an easy practice to learn. To help develop a beginner’s mind in approaching both novel and daily activities, consider the following ideas, tips, and strategies.

Be Present

Cultivating mindfulness is helpful in silencing the inner voice that may be critical of considering something new. Instead, take a few deep breaths and clear your mind of those “what ifs,” or “that’s not the right way,” or other similar judgmental thoughts.

Instead, listen in the moment to the information, be open to new experiences, and be willing to listen and attempt to understand the perspectives of others. Do not worry about how this will fit with a current idea or practice; just absorb the information as presented. If you find yourself mentally judging or dismissing the new information, take a few deep breaths and bring yourself back to the present and judgment-free information intake.

Be Curious

Take time to look at things around you and wonder why and how. This can be as simple as starting with why you take a specific route to work and home again. Then, think about how you could take a different route. Instead of assuming the information provided or the processes used are the only options, ask about other possibilities.

Be Free From Ego 

Many people stop their quest for lifelong learning when they think they already know everything about the subject or area. This is the ego speaking, as new innovations occur in any field on an ongoing basis.

Letting go of needing to have the answers is also freeing up the mind to learn more, particularly in areas of passion and focus.

Taking the time to explore options, ask questions, be present and curious, and let know of judgment helps you to create both a beginner’s mind and a lifelong quest for knowledge and learning.

Knowing yourself on a deeper level is critical in charting your course to personal and professional improvement and growth. While knowing yourself may seem obvious, it can be difficult to be objective and proactive in identifying our strengths and potential challenges and then planning for growth.

Many people who do not know themselves and recognize the areas where they should focus their growth are surprised when annual performance reviews or peer or management feedback is not positive. This is often a time when people feel criticized or misunderstood, particularly if they have not taken the time to consider their performance based on objective standards.  

Tips for Getting Started

The easiest place for most people to start is with their areas of strength. Make a list of the things that you know you do well. This list is not just about work performance but also your strengths in interpersonal relationships and getting things done outside of the work environment.

It can be helpful to think of this as a cumulative list. You were not always good at these strengths, and they were skills, attributes, or areas of interest and knowledge you developed over time and with experience.

Next, make a list of areas where you believe there is potential for growth. This growth can also extend beyond what you need in your current job. For those with a goal to transition to another career, consider the potential areas for growth in that new position.

Transferrable Skills and Knowledge

With the strengths and areas of growth lists, consider if any of your current strengths are applicable to the areas of growth. In many cases, the skills and abilities you have developed as a strength can be transferred or adapted to help in building areas where you feel you need to grow.

It is important to consider soft skills as well as specific performance objectives or certifications and degrees. Soft skills are essential for leadership roles and are often the most difficult to assess and develop.

Look at Yourself Like an Interviewer  

A great exercise is to imagine your dream job or the job you aspire to have in the next few years. Write or create a list of required skills and abilities. Then, assume the role of interviewer and assess your ability to meet those requirements.

Areas where you do not feel you meet the criteria are your growth areas. Areas where you meet or exceed the requirements are your strengths. Keep in mind, you can continue to develop strengths, and there is no need to limit your growth in any area. Knowing yourself and what you want to accomplish helps chart your personal and professional development course.