Set Micro Goals Before You Get to Work

Here is another experiment for you that I have found very effective.  Each morning as we drag our bag o-bones outa bed we naturally begin to focus in on what we have in front of us.  I’m guessing many of you have a role at work where you cannot predict what will happen each day.  Yes you may have a few fixed commitments, meetings and such but really once the whirlwind gets a hold of you it’s easy to lose yourself in the day, fight fires and by the time you catch your breath you find you are in the car driving home.

You are not doing anything wrong, those things you did are important and if you don’t do them you may be invited to go do something else but you do need to find some balance.

Each morning set 1 to 3 micro goals.  Generally doing this in the shower and during breakfast works best for me.  These are things that no matter how crazy your day becomes you WILL GET DONE BEFORE YOU GO HOME.  These can be things like, preparing a presentation, putting an overdue task behind you, having a difficult conversation that needs to take place, or simply submitting a backlog of expenses.

Writing this post for my team was a Micro Goal for me today.  The feeling of satisfaction I get while driving home knowing that I don’t have to worry about those few hot items tomorrow is a great stress reliever.

Starting now (for tomorrow) make a mental list and repeat it once or twice in your head as you start your day.  There is no need to write these down and no need to keep a record.  If you are having trouble remembering your list then the items you’ve chosen probably are not important enough to be in there so don’t stress about it.

Micro Goal Setting – The Next Level

Ultimately when you sit down for your review you want to be able to show what YOU have done.  You will never achieve Rockstar status if you simply respond to other people’s requests.  You cannot let others set your agenda.  You cannot let others control your calendar.  You need to drive.  You need to lay out a plan and execute on it.   That is where real goal setting needs to happen.  Assuming you are doing this already you can use this Micro Goal setting practice to advance your vision daily.  Review your annual goals regularly and pick one actionable item, one important next step and make sure it is included in your Micro Goals for the day.  This continuous march forward is a powerful tool for aligning your actions with your priorities.