Keeping your managerial and team resolutions after January
Did you make any managerial or team resolutions for the new year? If so, you might be finding it challenging to keep them as the weeks go by. And you’re not alone: Joseph Luciani reports in the U.S. News that 80 percent of resolutions fail.
Fortunately, you don’t have to struggle — let alone give up. Here’s how to keep your resolutions after January.
SMART goals
Many people give up on their resolutions simply because their goals are ambitious, they’re almost unattainable. That’s why Jen A. Miller advises in her article “How to Make (and Keep) a New Year’s Resolution” for The New York Times that you need to make resolutions that are SMART:
- Specific: Make sure your goals aren’t too vague. For example, instead of stating, “We want to increase revenue significantly this year,” you could state, “We want to increase revenue by 15 percent in Q1.”
- Measurable: Whether you want to increase something or change the way you do things, you need to be able to measure your progress. For instance, if you want your team to be more environmentally friendly, you can state something like, “We’ll immediately start bringing travel mugs to work instead of using disposable cups and we’ll eliminate printed documents by the end of Q2.”
- Achievable: Make sure your goals are attainable. If necessary, break them down into smaller steps. So instead of deciding to replace your entire legacy computer system within six months, opt to replace the various programs by new apps at a pace of one each month.
- Relevant: Are your resolutions truly relevant to the purpose of your team? Make sure they support your company’s mission and your team’s immediate goals — that way, you’re more likely to get all of your team members on board.
- Time-bound: Remember to allocate sufficient time to achieve your goals. Keep in mind that new habits aren’t learned overnight and many objectives take longer than you’d initially think to achieve.
So take some time to review your resolutions to see if they’re SMART — and if not, adapt them accordingly.
Accountability
It’s often easier to keep your resolutions when you have people supporting you and keeping you accountable. So, share your resolutions with your team and schedule meetings at the end of each month to see how you’re progressing. (Just keep in mind that since this year is a leap year, February has one day more than usual!)
Finally, don’t let small missteps or failures discourage you. Instead, hold a team meeting to determine what went wrong and why — and then outline a plan to get back on track.
Source:
https://www.nytimes.com/guides/smarterliving/resolution-ideas