Setting the right GOALS at the RIGHT time!

By: Stacy Spahle

How do you keep a team focused when the news coming at them is so alarming? How do you plan when the future is so uncertain? How does your business survive in the face of mounting economic pressures? It all boils down to planning. But long-term formal plans have likely been thrown out due to this ‘new normal’.

The most successful businesses create a strategic business plans and many of those organizations review their plans and adjust for new opportunities, quarterly, bi-annually. Rarely do businesses have the need to plan week to week or day to day. But during this unprecedented time, that is exactly what you have to do to survive and thrive.

CEO and founder of ActionCOACH Brad Sugars, addresses the need for business owners to set more nimble and flexible goals at a very granular level. Sugar’s explains in the video attached, https://www.facebook.com/BradleySugars/videos/889338604846761/ that businesses are in three buckets; 1) planning for reopening 2) pivoting to meet new business opportunities 3) ramping up to meet new business flow. In each of these buckets, business leaders need ways to keep their staff more focused on the most important and critical activities to stay on a path to a) survive in the short term and b) to prepare to thrive in the long term.

Whether you are preparing to add staff to meet new demands, making plans to reopen or changing processes/systems/ and reallocating resources to deliver new products or services keeping track of the most critical activities where you need to make the most impact. Setting S.M.A.R.T (Specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time bound) goals is a great way to achieve your plans. During a crisis you need to adjust your goals scope, time frames and relevant to keep the business operating. Break the big challenges down to the smallest increments and give your teams attainable targets to hit.

Establishing shorter time frames for goals is critical now to ensure that everyone in the organization gets “wins”. These wins, regardless of the size, keep employees positive and it makes them feel more invested in the outcomes. These KPIs or critical activities keep everyone in the organization in a mindset of productivity. During a crisis, every goal achieved becomes exponentially more important and even more important. The outcomes of these short-term goals keep the business resilient and moving forward. Keep in mind, employees may be asked to take on projects, duties and roles they have never done before. You as a leader needs tools to ensure they progress and stay committed.

Sugar’s notes that shorter term goals should be very flexible. Ensure that your team is ready to go back to “normal” at a moment’s notice, and everyone has to stay nimble to address changes in the marketplace. Being able to pivot, adjust, redirect, and redeploy resources quickly may be the difference between survival and extinction of your business. One day at a time has never been so meaningful.

Click here to get access to Brad Sugar’s new 10-day, 5-hour training program for FREE to help businesses survive and thrive during this crisis.

https://www.actioncoach.com/covid19-business-survival-training/

Reason #1: Different styles and methods of business coaching don't work for everyone

It's important to be honest with yourself and conduct a realistic assessment when it comes to business coaching. Though business coaching can have many benefits, it might not work for everyone.

Every individual brings their own experiences and values to the coaching dynamic, so results will vary. Additionally, some individuals might need more than just a coach. They might also need specialised knowledge or communication strategies specific to their industry or target audience. Below are a few key factors to consider:

Reason #2: There is no clear focus or vision (talk about time dedication here too)

cIt's important to be honest with yourself and conduct a realistic assessment when it comes to business coaching. Though business coaching can have many benefits, it might not work for everyone.

Business coaching is an effective tool for developing a clearer focus and vision for growing your business. A good coach will help you to take a comprehensive look at your strengths, weaknesses, and available resources that can be used to reach those goals. They will also help you draw up action plans with step-by-step instructions to get there.

By providing honest feedback and being patient throughout the process, a business coach can make sure that you’re on the right track. This will enable you to set realistic milestones and tasks.

These tasks may need dedicated time outside of coaching sessions. For example, a coach might help a client develop a marketing strategy or implement new systems for managing employees. However, if the client does not have enough time to devote to these tasks outside of coaching sessions, progress will likely stall.

Both the coach and the client must have enough time available to reflect on past experiences, brainstorm new solutions, and test out different strategies. If either party is rushed or distracted during coaching sessions due to other commitments or obligations, they may struggle to fully engage in this process.

Effective business coaching also requires a commitment to regular meetings and ongoing communication. If either the coach or the client does not have enough time to dedicate to these meetings, progress may be slow or nonexistent.

It's important to recognise that business coaching is an ongoing process that takes time to yield results. While some clients may see improvements after just a few sessions with their coach. Others may need months or even years of consistent effort before they begin seeing real changes in their businesses.

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