How to achieve those New Year's Goals by Kerry L. Johnson, Ph.D. Jan was excited last year with her new resolutions. She set goals to lose 20 pounds, prospect more for business, ask for more referrals and make a lot more money. You can never be too skinny or too rich, she would tell herself. The problem was that she could never seem to stick to her New Year's resolution goals for more than a couple of weeks at best. It's tough to change. Only babies like change.. You are the way you were 5 years ago except for the new clothes you are wearing and your hair style. And even those may have stayed the same. Recidivism, prisoners going back to prison, within 5 years of getting out is a whopping 85% nationwide. Is prison all that much fun now that felons are dying to go back? Probably not. It's just tough to change. The divorce rate in America is a shocking 62% within 10 years of getting married. Do you think that number is higher or lower for second marriages? The divorce rate for second marriages is 78%. The reason for the increase is that you took yourself with you to the second marriage. No wonder it's so difficult to stick to those resolutions. We have a tough enough time just deciding on a change in menu for dinner. Setting goals for yourself is easy. Sticking to the plan to attain those goals is almost impossible. If you have set New Year's Goals before and found that your game plan lasted only until the final football kick-off, read on. Years ago, studies conducted on Harvard University graduates showed that 3% of those students who set career goals achieved 3 times as much income as their peers who failed to plan. In studies done at San Diego State University, students who were undecided about their major area of study had significantly lower grades than even those who changed their major frequently. Is a change of direction even better than no direction? Recently, I consulted a franchisee who was dissatisfied with the way he was marketing. He needed to make some changes. First, he used mailings to bring in business. Then he marketed to target groups. Lastly, he got eyeball to eyeball close to new care buyers and his sales went up. But the biggest change occurred when he started to follow up by phone after mailings. His production was at a million $ level consistently in spite of his directional change. His peers who were undirected were consistently out produced. If goals are so important then why do so few of us even do the minimum and write them down? A lot of the difficulty may be in your own fear of failure. I sat in on a management planning session last year in which a supervisor asked a salesperson what the next year's production goals were. The salesperson said, "I don't know. I really don't believe in goals. They're just resolutions made to be broken." The supervisor said, "Look, I need to put down something for you." The salesperson replied, "OK, write down last year's sales - 10%. The point is that many people are unused to setting goals, based on their fear of meeting them. They are so worried about failing to achieve objectives that they avoid setting them at all. Have you ever avoided setting a goal to lose weight? The problem compounds if you have told others you were on a diet before. They all know that you weren't able to hold to your commitments. Fear of failure is the major contributor to poor goal achievement. The logic follows, "If I don't set goals, I don't fail. If I don't fail, I won't have to face a loss of self-confidence." We've all heard that it's better to set high goals and miss, than to fail to set them at all. But this simple philosophy doesn't work. You can't listen to a motivational speaker pump you up and suddenly expect to be an achiever. It's a little like the salesman who walked into his manager's office and said, "I can't make my goals this month." The manager said, "What do you mean you can't make your goals this month? I paid a motivational speaker $1,500 to pump you up. Do you remember what he said? Be positive. What do you have to say for yourself now." The salesman said, "I'm positive I can't make my goals this month." What can we do specifically to achieve goals? The answer lies in being smart when you set them. Most business people fail to consider the 4 keys to getting and achieving New Year's goals, 1) Be specific, 2) Make them short term, 3) Plan medium term, 4) schedule long term objectives. When I consulted in the late 1970's with a large oil company, I asked one salesperson for a goal that would motivate him. He said to be happy. I asked him how he would know when he achieved it. He just shrugged his shoulders. Varying degrees of happiness fade in and out daily. Nebulous goals like happiness only serve to frustrate us. I told him to write down three specific achievements that would make a contribution to his sense of happiness. He said a 560 SEL Mercedes, $100,000 in liquid investments, and to be home at 5:00 p.m. daily so he could play with his kids. Now we're cooking. He got specific. I then asked him to set dates when he would like to acquire these objectives. When he set dates, the goals became real. I played tennis on a basketball court once when I was a kid. The court had lines but no net. I couldn't tell if my stroke was a winner or a dog. People who fail to be specific and set dates are playing tennis without a net and possibly without balls. H.L. Hunt, the late great Texas oil tycoon, once said, "If you set goals, you first must decide what you'll sacrifice to get them." This is a strong statement coming from a tycoon who won his first Oklahoma oil well in a poker game of five-card stud. But it is profoundly accurate. You can't set a goal without a change in some part of your business and personal life in an effort to get it. When you set goals you can achieve, first make them long term and big. A long term objective is one that exists 1-5 years out. These are specific and tangible dreams. A long term objective is one that exists 1-5 years out, for example, adding three new offices, or expanding your business to numerous states or cities. Next, work backwards and set a medium term goal that can be achieved between 1 month to 1 year. This might be doubling your referrals or starting a new telephone follow up on the direct mailings you use to prospect for new business. This mid term goal objective should really be a stepping stone to hitting the long term dream. Next, work backwards again from the medium term goal and set short term objectives. Short term means setting goals you want to accomplish today or this week. For example you may want to see 3 sources of referrals like tire company managers before you go to lunch today. You may want to write the letter you will send out this week by the end of work today. The bottom line is, those who are best at setting objectives work to achieve their goals by the day and often by the hour. The do this or they don't allow themselves to go home. They are committed and focused to achieving the goals by the date they want them. To show the importance of focusing on the days and even hours to achieve goals, consider the small business owner who wanted to be one of the top 10 firms in his market by certain date. He would need to establish a goal over a three to five year period. He would then set a one-year schedule of milestones to reach; which might include increasing his own production, hiring superstar salespeople and staff and develop a strong relationship with 10 investors. And lastly to acquire a net income of $2,000,000 in the 5th year. Next he would need to determine the amount of business needed by year/month etc. He would need to know the weaknesses and strengths of his competitors. How many salespeople did they have. Which sources of referrals gave them the most amount of business? Working backwards to short term goals, he would then know what he had to do today and this week. He might have to set up a list of the top 100 referral sources in the area. He may have to also set up a file on the loan officers who command the most business right now. By doing all this, anyone can achieve exactly the objectives they want at the time they want it. J.C. Penney once passionately said, "Give me a stock clerk with a goal and I will give you a man who will make history. Give me a man without a goal and I will give you a stock clerk." The bigger the goal, the better. But can goals be unattainable? There are no unrealistic goals, only unrealistic time frames. Big goals bring out the best in yourself. You will perform best when you stretch a little. In St. Moritz, Switzerland, I played in a Grand Prix tennis match against the German national champion. Nobody believed I could win against such a strong player. He was ranked 69 worldwide while I was rated in the 90's for two weeks until the ranking system on the ATP computer was fixed when I dropped down to 10,037. But during the match, I made no mistakes. My volleys were crisp. My serves were so solid, I thought I could burn a hole through a concrete wall. I eventually won by a narrow margin in the last set, but I also played the best game of my life. If I had not been challenged to such a high extent, I also wouldn't have stretched my game. Make sure your objectives are big and will bring out the best in you. Lastly, get photos of your objectives and tack them on your walls, fold them in your wallet or anywhere else you are sure to see and be reminded of them. Some of the greatest salespeople and achievers I have met were so single-minded and focused, they never took their attention off what they wanted. Below is a complimentary worksheet to help you plan for your objectives. Simply fill this sheet out with a photo of your goal, it's price, and when you want it and what you'll do to get it. It'll not only keep you directed, but also help you work toward getting it on schedule. It's easier to reach goals than it is to set them. Take some time and discuss with your spouse exactly what you want and when you want it. If you start to achieve your objectives using the techniques I've discussed, you'll be more successful without working any harder in the long run. No great achiever has ever succeeded without goals. They help us become profitable, productive and build self-esteem. If you take these steps and use them, you'll plan to succeed instead of plan to fail. Steps To Reaching 2000's Resolutions Set specific, realistic goals. Consult spouse or peer for feedback on your goals, if appropriate. Goals should be in long-term, mid-term and short-term increments. To achieve goals, you may need to make a change in your business and personal life. Place list of goals in visible spot. Monitor on weekly/quarterly etc. basis. If you aren't meeting your objectives, perhaps you need to adjust your vision or your capabilities. Dr. Kerry Johnson is a frequent speaker at financial services industry conferences around the world. He speaks on topics like "How to Read Your Clients Mind" and "How to Increase Your Sales By 70% in 6 Weeks" . He is the author of 6 books including "Mastering the Game: The Human Edge in Sales and Marketing." To receive a free subscription to his monthly newsletter, "The Winning Edge - Online," call (800) 386-1749 or subscribe on his web site at www.Kerryjohnson.com E-Mail Kerry@kerryjohnson.com