How do you set goals in your organization today? Surely by now we all define our goals according to the guidelines of SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely), so everythings great right?
What if I told you that SMART goals are self-limiting? What if I told you that if you insist on defining SMART goals that your business will not achieve its potential and is at risk of being disrupted?
Heresy right?
Let me explain.
Under conventional wisdom, we spend lots of time defining goals that we believe are 'stretch' goals, but that we are certain are attainable if our team achieves their potential. We define specific measures, set the bar at what seems like realistic and attainable heights (but just far out enough as to require us to perform at a high level to attain them), and then we set our team free to deliver on those goals.
Think of the types of goals you set for your teams today: achieve year-over-year sales growth of 10%;...