Business Goal Setting: Starting at the End

Let’s talk Destination Mastery and the importance that knowing where you’re going plays in regaining control of your business.

You can’t work out where you want your business to go next if you don’t know what you want the end result to be so** start with the end in mind**. Think about your goals for the business and where it’s headed. Those goals will set the compass direction and give you back control of the ship.

Business Goal Setting is important

When most people start their businesses, they’re so caught up in the excitement or overwhelmed with the tasks involved that they only look a week or a month ahead (OK, let’s be honest….often a day ahead, at best). Savvy entrepreneurs are looking way beyond that!

And they know exactly what they want their business to look like and what they want to do with it.

So take a moment to think about what the end result is for you and the business:

• Do you want to sell the business? When? For how much?

• Do you want to take on a business partner in two years?

• Do you want to expand nationally or internationally?

• Do you want to grow your business by X % or turnover X dollars by 2020?

Only 6% of businesses have a written goal. No wonder there are so many business owners ‘lost at sea’.

Interestingly, 90% of businesses achieve our definition of success which is having a business that produces the income that the owner wants and a business that runs smoothly without the owner. A strong correlation between those who have a written goal and those who succeed!

Effective Goal-Setting in 4 Steps

So what is effective goal-setting? Start here:

• **Identify and commit – **Take the time to sit down, think ahead and define what you want from your business and what you want it to look like in 5 years, then 3 years, then 1 year. Yes, start with the end in mind and work back from there. Engage a business coach who can give you an external perspective and guide you through the process.

• **Clarity – **Be really clear about your goal. “I want to run a successful business” is NOT an effective goal. There are too many variables that haven’t been addressed. Be specific about what success looks like for you. Break a goal down so it is clear to anyone who reads it what the plan is. Something like “Open ten shopfronts in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland within 24 months” or “Achieve $750,000 per year in top line revenue by 2017” or “Achieve 30% gross profit and over 1 million dollars in top line revenue by start of 2018 with the aim to sell the business for 5 million dollars” is very specific. It’s easy to measure, result-oriented and has a time scale attached to it.

• **Set yourself up for success – **Make sure your goals are achievable. Setting yourself up for failure will do nothing for your morale and that of the company. While it would be nice to retire to a tropical island with millions in the bank and a cocktail in your hand a year after your business opens, it’s not very realistic. A business coach can help you set realistic goals but more importantly review and tweak them regularly so you stay on target and your goals grow in line with the growth of your business.

• **Accountability – **Writing a goal on a piece of paper and then filing it in your bottom desk drawer will not remind you of your goal. Creating a fabulous document all about your business goals then filing it electronically in a folder never to be seen again is also a thumbs down.

Your goals should become part of the business plan, the action plans, the life and soul of the company and the foundations for any strategic decisions that are made. If those goals are squashed down in a file somewhere….well, there’s a reason they say out of sight, out of mind…..get ready for choppy waters ahead.

Taking control of your future by practising Destination Mastery is one of the foundations to achieving business success sooner. It’s like getting in your car and setting the GPS to your destination before you put your foot on the pedal.

A much smoother ride that leaves you refreshed and ready when you arrive at your destination.