There is no failure, only feedback: The only true failure is giving up. This is something I say to my children often. It serves as a reminder that as long as we keep striving toward our goals, we have not failed to achieve them, we are simply still working toward achieving them. It’s just as true for adults as we endeavor to achieve our personal and professional goals.
Believe it or not, we are already at the end of the first quarter of 2021. With so much going on in the world—politics, crazy weather (I spent two days without power due to the snowstorms in Texas), a pandemic that’s turning a year old—it is easy to lose focus on our own goals. However, allowing these things to get in the way can slow us down or keep us from achieving our goals. So, now is a good time to turn our focus back onto the goals we set for 2021. Here are three easy steps you can take to do just that.
Celebrate
If you’ve achieved one or more of your goals, celebrate! Take a moment to pat yourself on the back. Perhaps you could share that you achieved your goal with others? There’s no shame in being proud of your accomplishment. You might even inspire someone.
Remember to celebrate milestones you’ve achieved too. For example, if your goal is to run a marathon by the end of 2021, and you’ve completed a 5K, that’s reason to celebrate!
Recalibrate
If you haven’t achieved any of your goals yet, don’t despair. We still have three quarters left in 2021. Perhaps things have changed, and certain goals aren’t a fit anymore? Cross them off your list altogether or move them to another year. Sometimes rearranging your goals, moving some up and moving others to later in the year can be helpful. It can also just be a matter of tweaking a goal to make it achievable. For example, if your goal is to complete a software upgrade at work, but your boss has also added two other projects that are high priority and must be done first, changing the timeline on your original goal makes sense.
Refocus
Most importantly, examine what has kept you from achieving your goals so far. Is there a fear you need to conquer, a challenge you need to overcome, or help you need to obtain? Is it a question of time, money, or resources? Do you need an accountability partner, someone who will give it to you straight when you’re slacking on your goals? Identifying the issue is usually the first step to solving it. Figure out what your next steps should be to achieving your goal, and then get to stepping! For example, if your goal is to increase sales, but there still aren’t as many networking events as there used to be so you can meet new prospects, consider other avenues to meet prospects or revisit current clients and see if their need for your product or service has increased.
As we begin the second quarter of 2021, let’s celebrate, recalibrate, and refocus on our personal and professional goals. They were important enough for you to set them at the beginning of the year. They’re probably important enough to keep working toward.
