From Lagging to Leading: 5 Practical Tips to Get Your 2023 Goals Back on Track
As leaders, we set ambitious goals to drive our teams and organizations towards success.
However, even the most experienced and well-intentioned leaders can find themselves behind on their goals from time to time. Whether it's due to unforeseen challenges, unexpected setbacks, or simply a miscalculation of time and resources, falling behind can be discouraging and demotivating.
But setbacks are not the end of the road.
In fact, they can be valuable learning opportunities that help us refine our strategies, strengthen our resilience, and emerge even stronger as leaders.
Here are five practical tips to get your goals back on track before the end of the year:
1. Reassess Your Goals
Take a step back, assess the situation and revisit your goals. Are they still relevant? Are they achievable within the remaining time frame? If not, consider adjusting your goals or setting new ones that align with your current circumstances and priorities.
2. Reset Expectations
Transparency is crucial in leadership. Openly communicate with your team and key stakeholders about your progress and any challenges you're facing. Involve them in the process of reassessing goals and identifying solutions. This will foster trust, engagement, and a shared sense of ownership towards overcoming the setback.
3. Dig Deep to Understand the Root Causes
Take time to identify the root causes of your setback. Are there external factors beyond your control, such as market shifts or economic downturns? Are there internal issues, such as resource constraints, team dynamics, or communication gaps? Understanding the root causes will help you develop more effective solutions.
4. Adjust Your Approach
Be flexible and willing to adapt your approach as needed. Circumstances may change, and you may need to adjust your strategies to stay on track. Don't be afraid to pivot or make course corrections when necessary. Often leaders wait too long to do this. Be willing to work with your team and key stakeholders to adjust as needed.
5. Seek Feedback and Support
Don't hesitate to seek feedback and support from mentors, colleagues, or trusted advisors. An objective perspective can help you identify blind spots and develop new strategies. Share your challenges and seek guidance on how to overcome them.
Remember, setbacks are not failures. They are simply opportunities to learn, adapt, and grow as leaders.
By following these steps and maintaining a positive outlook, you can effectively navigate setbacks, regain momentum, and achieve your goals.
Leadership Practice
Take time this week to review your goals, assess your progress and explore the five tips above to see if one or all of them are required before the end of the quarter/year. Then, set up conversations with your team and key stakeholders to find a new approach and solutions so that you can deliver on your goals.
About Athena
Athena Williams, Founder and CEO of Tenacious Leadership Institute, has been supporting leaders worldwide to become more tenacious for over 20 years. She has found that tenacity is the key to sustained leadership success in today’s ever-changing world. Through her coaching and leadership development programs, she helps leaders expertly handle change, complexity and other challenges so they can quickly get better results for themselves, their teams and their organizations. Take the first step to becoming a tenacious leader by scheduling a call with us.
