We all have past accomplishments that we like to look back on and feel a sense of pride about, but those are not nearly as important to the longevity of your business as the things that you might accomplish later on in the future.

In order to ensure that your business is on the right track and fully prepared to raise the bar each and every consecutive fiscal year, setting the right goals and following through is imperative. Let's dig deeper into the goals and why they’re important.

Tracking Progress

You can use your detailed goal list to track how well you are doing and adjust your strategy to overcome pitfalls, and you can see how far you have to go before you finally reach that end goal that exemplifies what you've spent the entire year trying to achieve.

It is a mental boost to understand where you are at, where you need to be, and what you have already accomplished for your company, and will keep you from steering in the wrong direction.

Maintaining the Proper Strategy

When you are aimless, your business will suffer. You will likely feel as if you are going into decisions blind, and you will probably make a few bad choices that have meaningful consequences. A detailed list of goals and potential milestones will give you a clear-cut journey to take towards success, and will allow you to make complex decisions that produce effective results for your company's overall success in the future. In other words, it will keep you on track and make each business task that much easier.

Promoting Accountability

When something goes wrong, and your revenue plummets, it is your first instinct to find any reason other than your own choices to explain that shortcoming away. That is the exact opposite of what you want to do, even though it is the easiest route to take.

By creating a goal list, you effectively remove your ability to create scapegoats for business issues, and you are faced to confront the issues that arise in a more productive way. It is harder in the short-term to say that you made a wrong decision or failed to work towards a milestone hard enough, but it will provide better long-term results for your endeavor as a whole.

How to Set Goals that Count

Anyone can set goals. It is as easy as sitting down and saying what you want to achieve. However, having poorly developed goals is just as bad as having no goals at all. Here are the key points you need to focus on when crafting your list of business goals:

Achievability: You can set any goal you want. You can say that you want your small press company to build a secondary headquarters on Pluto if you want. However, like the example we provided, if your goal isn't achievable, it is nonsense. Choose realistic goals that are just out of your comfort zone. If a goal is too easy, it won't be worthwhile. If it is too outlandish, it will be out of your grasp.

Details: You can't choose a broad sweeping goal like “generate revenue”. That is a good way to end up nowhere, fast. Choose a very detailed goal such as generating $2,000,000 in revenue within a set period of time. Make sure you fill out the details on how you'll actually achieve that goal.

Measurability: You need to be able to see tangible results from your labor. If you can't measure your success, you will likely fall off track. Find a way to measure each milestone as you make your way towards your goal, and you will have evidence that your efforts aren't being wasted.

Relevance: Is your short-term goal relevant to your company? For example, a green cosmetics company wouldn't set goals to incorporate plastic into its packaging materials within the fiscal year. Choose a goal that matches where you are at and where your company ultimately wants to be. 

Plan for the Future and Thrive!

Setting goals will take your company to all new heights. Don't go into the next fiscal year blind and aimless. Set goals today to see a better tomorrow for your company!