So we are rounding the corner on another year and soon we will be talking about goals for the coming year. This year, I challenge you to choose one top goal. This is not to say that if you reach your goal, you can’t prioritize another goal, rather it is to help with focus.
WE TEND TO SPILL ALL OVER
Have you heard the saying, we each have three buckets, one for health, one for wealth, and one for relationships? If you try to pour yourself into all three buckets at once then you tend to spill all over, and no one bucket manages to get very full in the process. However, if you just focus on filling one bucket at a time then you can generally do a quicker and better job of it.
Look at most businesses today, it is likely you would find that many have multiple top priories. Some have priorities in the double digits. All are important, all needing time and attention. Then each employee has multiple goals under each of the top priorities. When it comes to execution, individuals are unable to discern which of the top priorities should take “priority.” Every priority/goal is supposed to be important, but the result is that each priority gets water down because they cannot give the time and attention needed to them.
CHOOSE ONE
The key is to have one “priority.” The top. The most important. While I know that sounds impossible to narrow down, I can say from experience there is usually one. When working with individuals, I like to have them think about, “what is that one area that if you focus on it, the other areas will start to fall into place.”
Pay attention, maybe it’s your health because you are not sleeping at night. You recognize that if you focus on improving your sleep, you will see improvements in your relationship because if you’re not tired you won’t be so edgy and strike out at your partner. Once you tackle your sleep you find you wake up alert, ready to go, finding you will be able to stay focused and concentrate at work. Oh, and your cravings for unhealthy foods will go down because your body is no longer looking for that boost in energy (i.e. sugar or caffeine) to keep you awake.
The key is to discover what to focus on first. Should you focus on your work? Your people? Your health? This process is not always as simple as it sounds. Take time and do not make this decision lightly. If you are finding you would still like some help discerning your top priority, let’s Chat.
P.S. Did you enjoy this blog? Read more from Jessica’s Journal or watch Jessica’s Saturday Sessions.