9 Steps to Achieving Your Business Goals

We are six weeks into the new year and most individuals (and businesses) have left their New Year’s Resolutions and strategy long behind. If by chance you are still on the correct course, then good for you. If you’ve gone astray, take heart, it’s not too late to start again. Recently I was talking to a business friend of mine that happens to be a pilot about staying the course in executing a business strategy. What he told me was so interesting I had to share it. He had an interesting take on strategy since he is both a business owner and pilot. Below is a summary of our conversation.

9 Steps to Achieving Your Business Goals

1. Everything starts with a dream – It doesn’t matter if it’s a business trip, business goal, vacation or any aspect of life. You have to visualize it to make it happen.
2. Determine your destination – What’s your goal? After you’ve dreamed the perfect “it” you must determine the actual destination. This is the actual goal.
3. Pay the price up front and in full – Commit completely to the goal, half way will not get you there. “Pay” the mental and emotional price up front.
4. Realize that it will be all out war – Once you’ve made a decision to go for it and determined the destination it will be all out war for your time, attention and resources. Some of it will come in the form of naysayers, time demands, legal problems, logistics, etc., but since you’ve already paid the price you were prepared for this and can push forward.
5. To take off you have to give it 100% – If you’re going to go for your business goal it can’t be done half way. Just as taking off at 1/2 throttle would meet with disastrous consequences, pursuing a business goal with half execution is certain to end in failure.
6. Stay in contact with the tower – It’s important to get constant feedback from the tower to make sure there are no unforeseen dangers around the corner. It’s just important to stay plugged in to your business team, mentors and advisors or friends and family members that have insight into your business.
7. Sometimes you have to alter course – While the destination or goal never changes sometimes it is necessary to alter course to avoid a dangerous storm. That storm may take you off course, but your destination has not changed. It may take you longer, but it’s better to land with your business and team intact than to fail on the course.
8. Everything eventually gets off course – Even though it can’t be seen a slight breeze could blow you off course. That’s why it’s important to always be looking at your gauges and GPS. Constantly review the progress to your goal. Are you executing on your strategy or does a course correction need to be made?
9. Don’t stop until you reach your destination – Having dreamed this great goal, launched on the great mission, don’t forget that we don’t stop until we actually accomplish the goal. Push all the way until the end.

If you have set out a strategy and business goals for this year and find yourself or your business behind in progress take these 9 steps to heart and begin again. I have full confidence that you’ll be back on track very soon.

photo credit: ATC via photopin (license)