10 Elements Of A Successful Business Goal

In business, there is always discussion about business goals.

Setting business goals.

Achieving business goals.

Ask yourself:

What are MY business goals?

What do I really want to accomplish?

In order to make these goals a reality, have you given thought to exactly what are the elements of a business goal?

Let’s think about what a business goal really is so you can attain more success, productivity and profitability at your company.

Here are 10 elements of a successful business goal to consider:

  1. Be A Dreamer: Goals begin with daydreaming. Thinking about how you would like your personal life and business life to be. This takes serious thought. Yes, it can be a process once you start. One thought will lead to another. Make it a goal to sit someplace quiet every day. Stare out a window. Let your thoughts flow.
  2. Write It Down: Have pen and paper ready to jot down thoughts, ideas, whatever comes to mind. Most of what you write may never go further than the page it was written on but it will get you started on your goals. It will get those daydreams out of your head and into a place where goals can begin to shift into reality. It will lead you someplace you haven’t been before but may want to further explore.
  3. Choose Your Business Goals: Once you start putting your thoughts on paper (or a computer document), it’s time to highlight what stands out to you. Have one business goal. Or choose a few goals. Just not too many that will cause you to lose focus.
  4. Goals Are Inherent To Human Nature: There is always something we want more of. From a business perspective, it could be you want to make more money or for the company to be more profitable. It could be to increase sales, create a new service or product, to move to a new location or purchase a building with more space than at present. Business goals are about improving ourselves and the company in one way but often in multiple ways. But it all starts with just one thought. Which then leads to another and another and another thought. Every thought gets you closer to your business goals.
  5. Be Specific: It’s good to always have goals. But it’s just as important to understand the elements of those goals by being very specific. For example: If you want to make more money, ask yourself: How will I make more money? How much more money do I want to make? What is the timeframe to reach that goal? Make sure you understand what you are wanting to accomplish and what it will take to get there. Otherwise, the business goal will never leave the piece of paper or document it is written on.
  6. Monitor Your Business Goals: Once you set your goal(s) determine how you are going to measure progress towards achieving the goal(s). What method of tracking your goal(s) will best serve the desired outcome? How will you know you are truly working towards your business goals? Whatever you do don’t spend more time on monitoring the goal than on being in action to reach the goal!
  7. Have An Action Plan: You need a step-by-step action plan to reach your business goals. Once again, you can’t formulate and keep the plan in your head. It needs to be written. Something you can easily reference and update along the way. Here’s an example of someone who wanted to be a wealthy business person. It’s a true story. Years ago there was a vast parcel of land in the suburbs of a major city. At the time, the person could have purchased the land for $100 an acre. But he didn’t buy it. He wanted to but just didn’t get around to making good on the opportunity. Yet his competition did. Eventually, it was developed into a major retail site and is now worth considerably more than $100 an acre. If only he had put forth an action plan to buy the land, life would be very different today.
  8. Have Relevant, Realistic Goals: If you can’t attain the goal then why keep wishing and hoping upon something that may never happen or isn’t possible? That’s just wasted energy filled with disillusionment. You need goals to motivate yourself. Put your energy towards what makes sense. Build upon it with incentives to reach even higher business goals. For example, if you set a goal of expanding your company first make sure it is profitable enough to handle the expansion. Or if you have dreams of buying a building for the business work the numbers to insure it’s affordable and in alignment with the needs of the business. Remember: Relevant and realistic are two very important aspects in business goal(s) achievement.
  9. Key Goal Setting Questions To Ask Yourself: When thinking through your business goals it is vital to ask yourself questions, such as –
    • Is it the right time?
    • Is it the right time to initiate and put this goal into motion?
    • Will it work?
    • What is the likelihood of this goal actually being fulfilled?
    • What will it take?
    • Am I making a mistake either if I do or I don’t move forward with this goal?
    • Is it truly the right goal to have at this time?
    • If not, what would be a more appropriate goal?
  10. To Do List: Whatever business goals you decide upon, make them a part of your daily to do list. This will help you prioritize your goals. Mark the progress of each and every goal. Keep you moving forward with attaining your goals. And creating new business goals to reach even higher levels of success and prosperity.

Business goals are important. We can all agree on that point. Make it a goal to get everyone you work with on board with individual and company goals. This requires effective communication to motivate all involved but the rewards can only lead to MORE dreams of even greater success.

To your success!