Use a 3×3 Approach for Your Effective Mid-year Goal Check In
It may be hard to believe, but we have nearly hit the midway point of this year. I know I am shocked that this year has moved along so quickly. The pace of the changes in our retail world continue to accelerate and create some disbelief. Much of the world is just now beginning to open back up from a more than sixteen-month pandemic induced lockdown. Yet, many retailers have seen record results in the first half of this year. It is exciting to see companies manage a growth model instead of concentrating only on expense management. I certainly believe that many of the innovations that were forced over the past year will remain and grow into a new era of retail. With that change comes an impact on many of the goals we may have set for ourselves and our teams. Taking a little time at the mid-year point is the perfect time to evaluate and update what we may have set out to achieve at the beginning of the year.
Goal review doesn’t have to be difficult, but it should be thorough. This is not an area to race through and check it off the list. This is an opportunity to evaluate and reflect on what you have accomplished, what needs to change, and what new opportunities hav surfaced. We can use a 3×3 approach to ensure we conduct an in-depth review of where we stand at the mid-point of our year. This allows you to look at three areas of your goals and review in three ways.
Goal Review
It starts by reviewing all the goals that have an impact on your role as a leader.
Your goals
Begin with your goals. You’ll dive in a little deeper in the next stage, but re-familiarize yourself with all aspects of the goals you have established for yourself. Hopefully, you are reviewing these regularly anyway, so this may be a fairly easy step. This is an opportunity to also celebrate what you have already accomplished so far this year.
Team member goals
Invest some time to review the goals of your team (your direct reports). I would recommend taking some time to do this without them first. This allows you to read through them, recall any conversations you have had along the way, and write down any questions you may have. Then schedule time with them to complete the review process and discuss the questions and thoughts you had during your review.
Team goals
Finally, take time to look at the goals you and your team set together to achieve as a team. What has been accomplished so far, what is still to come, and what has changed since the goals were set? Similar to the approach with the other member’s goals, review on your own first, then set up time with your team to discuss what the next steps will be.
Three ‘Rs’ to reset for the rest of the year
In the second stage of the mid-year goal review, take some time to identify what you need to do with each of your goals. In the first step you re-familiarized and set up the conversations for what would be next. Here, define those steps.
Recharge
If the goal is solid, remains relevant, and the appropriate progress is being made, then you may just need to recharge the batteries, so you can continue full speed ahead on what you already have in motion.
Revise
You may identify that the environment has changed in such a way that the goal, while still relevant, needs to be approached in a new way. This is the opportunity to revise how you have framed your goal, the measurements, or the outcome you are seeking. In many cases, people may find that they are far exceeding some of their financial goals for this year so far. That should feel great. However, your goals should continue to challenge you to ensure you can maximize the opportunity that you have in front of you. This may be restating your goals as much as revising them, depending on your situation and the goal you set.
Remove
In some cases, the goals from six months ago may no longer be relevant to the situation you find yourself in now. It is okay to remove a goal entirely. This gives you the opportunity to either replace that goal with something that does make sense for the timing or utilize those resources to be applied to the other goals you have. It is very healthy to review and actually remove goals that no longer make sense both at the personal and team levels. There is no sense in keeping something that doesn’t work any longer.
Planning for success
You now have the first two stages complete — you have reviewed your goals and reframed or updated them in a way that makes sense for where you are at. Now, the final stage is planning to ensure you can achieve them in the final six months of the year.
Resources
Ask yourself whether you have all the resources you need to achieve the updates you have made? Where do you need to balance things out? Are there other areas of your business you can make changes to in order to free up time, people, or money to accomplish what makes more sense now? “Resources” is such a wide-ranging word, so make sure you review this at the highest and simplest levels. Small changes can make a big difference.
Habits
Along with a resource review, what habits do you have that need to be updated or changed outright to either create that time or maximize the goal outcomes you have established? Again, a small adjustment could make a huge difference in how you act on your goals. Reframing something in your mind may be what is needed, especially since many of us have been working differently for more than a year now. Factor in any of those changes now to anticipate what you may need to do differently in the coming weeks and months ahead.
Purpose
In this final step, reflect on the purpose behind the goals you have set for yourself, the ones set by your team, and the ones for the team as a whole. Why did you establish these? Why are they important? This is the time to look beyond the surface and reconnect to the importance each of these hold to you personally and professionally. Purpose is the driving force that will help you re-energize for the months ahead and push you to completion.
It can feel like goals are a never-ending thing that is always there. And in many ways they are, that is the goal. Done well, your goals are not obstacles or tasks to complete, they are the means to your success. This mid-year goal review will help ensure when you look back on the full year that has passed that you have achieved everything you set out to and done so purposefully and efficiently.
When will you schedule your mid-year check in for your goals?
Other Resources:
Go Beyond SMART Goals for Success — Add Pre and Post SMART Steps
Resetting Goals for a Year That Has Changed Dramatically
6 Rs to Use to Set Up Success in the Second Half of 2020
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