Setting goals for your business

Short and long-term goals will provide you with a framework to work within, will keep you focused on a target, and influence your actions and decision making.

Establishing goals also has the added benefit of making you think hard about what you want your business to look like and how you will make it happen.

Here are three ways to create meaningful goals.

1. Evaluate and reflect on your business

You should take some time to look at your business so far and take into account elements such as profit, processes and staff. Are you where you want to be? Are you happy with what you have achieved so far? Be honest with yourself. There is always room for improvement. If you have experienced drawbacks, you should see these as opportunities for growth, rather than disappointments.

2. Make SMART goals

Goals should follow the SMART acronym:

Specific: the more detailed your description, the clearer the goal and the higher the chance of achieving it.

Measurable: you should establish a criteria so that you can determine whether you’ve met a goal.

Attainable: you will need to have a think about how important this goal is to you and whether you have the skills and tools to achieve it.

Relevant: your goal should be aligned with your business objectives.

Timely: you should set a timeframe for when you hope to achieve the goal by as it creates urgency and prevents you from procrastinating.

Areas that you could establish goals around include: your staff, your business, customer service, marketing and you as the business owner.

3. Have accountability

Once you have established your goals, you should share it with someone. It could be your spouse, partner or a mentor. Ask them to keep you accountable and to check up on you regularly to see where you are at in achieving it. It may be helpful to share your goal with your colleagues so they can be on board with what you’re trying to achieve. It will also motivate them to strive towards your business goals.

Setting goals is a challenging but rewarding process. Once you know what they are, you can work hard and stay focused to achieve them.

When you have achieved a goal, no matter how small it is, you should reward yourself for a job well done.

And while it is important to set goals, it is also important to reflect upon them and re-evaluate them where necessary. Sometimes a goal you had in mind may not turn out to be achievable or relevant, so it best to scratch that goal and try for another victory.