KPIs: Tracking Metrics That Matter For Success
You’re in a good place. You’ve found C.L.A.R.I.T.Y in your career path, and you’ve set S.M.A.R.T. goals to get there. You’ve made it farther than most people ever will. There’s just one thing missing: accountability. And without that, your chances of checking those goals off your list go down tremendously. “If you have set your intentions but you choose inaction, you are only insulting yourself.” – Mike Regina. How do we make ourselves accountable so that we are setting and checking off goals? In the business world, people often utilize Key Performance Indicators or KPIs. Think of KPIs as your report card for your SMART goals. Did you achieve your Specific and Measurable (the “S” and “M” in SMART) goal? If not, let’s evaluate what happened. KPIs [...]
The Essential Guide to Creating SMART Goals and How To Write Them
We’ve covered how you can find C.L.A.R.I.T.Y. in your career path. But once you have that clarity and have a long-term goal in mind, the next step is to set up shorter-term goals. Why? Because shorter-term goals give you direction and a sense of accomplishment along the way. They become your plan to accomplish the long-term goals you have. So let’s spend a moment to walk through how you can make excellent goal-setting part of your arsenal. Once again, there’s an acronym to help you remember what matters: you need to set S.M.A.R.T. goals. The first step is to make your goals Specific. Thinking of your long-term goal, what specific steps do you need to implement to get there? For example, if your long-term goal is to [...]
How to Gain Clarity When You Feel Stuck in Your Current Career
You know this moment well. We’ve all been here countless times. You are in the early stages of a conversation with someone, and the universal, inevitable question comes up: “So… What do you do?” Aside from the fact that we all wish we weren’t defined by a job (yes, our beautiful, complex beings are much more than just a reflection of a job), I want you to think today about how you react to that question. Do you freeze? Do you generalize? Do you share a few details and hope the conversation is redirected? Or are you one of the few who is so excited to share, you light up inside? If you aren’t a person who lights up inside when describing your occupation, the more important [...]
Looking Forward: Three Steps to Keep Your Eyes on Success
This is my third blog article in a series about my favorite topics: failure and the mindset you need when overcoming it. But you won’t see the word failure in this title. That’s because we will finish this series focusing on what you can take away from failure – success, and stories to share. I’ve previously written about what it means to have a Growth Mindset and how you can view failures as a positive – by Failing Forward. After you have begun to view your trials and failures as assets – and I genuinely believe failures should be viewed that way – you are ready to build on those assets and share their value with others. You can use these three steps to get there. Step [...]
Failing Forward: Why Failure is Important for Success
I’ve previously written about what it means to have a “Growth Mindset" in my last blog, "How to Fail Forward with a Growth Mindset Professionally and Personally." Those who view obstacles and failures as opportunities to grow have a distinct advantage over those with a “fixed mindset,” characterized by a fraught ability to move on after failures. But more importantly, how can we implement a growth mindset? And if you think you already have one, what can you do to sharpen that critical skill? Let’s look at how to take failures with the seriousness they deserve but still “put them in their place” as building blocks rather than mental hurdles. Don’t Regret Action One of the most common reactions to failure is to regret even trying. Let’s address [...]
How to Fail Forward with a Growth Mindset Professionally and Personally
How to Fail Forward? “Adopt a Growth Mindset.” “Leave your fixed mindset behind and take on a growth mindset.” "Failure is not an option." "Failure is not an option." We’ve all heard these quips before and likely spent less than a minute contemplating what they mean. On the surface, the advice seems simple: you either feel stuck—fixed—or you grow. Not much else to understand, right? On the contrary, I believe it should be every business executive’s goal to spend some time thinking about what these terms mean and how they can be applied in their lives and leadership because these terms aren’t just about growing versus standing still. They are about one of my favorite subjects: failure. Let’s start by reviewing how these two characterizations of mindsets [...]