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4/27/2009
Andrew Kotulak
Manage Your Business or Career Goals By Setting Priorities
We all have many goals, and some may conflict. Choosing a goal wisely, as part of your overall
plan should reflect your heartfelt passion or purpose.
As outlined in Part I of this series, making a list of goals, and deciding which ones are the
most important will help you better manage your business or career.
Your top priorities should be closely related to the business or career you are in, such as
improving customer satisfaction or increasing sales by 25%.
Make another list of what you do during the day and how much time each activity takes. Compare
this list to your list of goals and priorities. You should be spending most of your time working
toward the highest priority goals. If your activities aren't lining up, take steps to change your
behavior.
Don't Let Your Time Get Away From You
How does and ant eat an elephant? One bite at a time. By achieving one small goal after
another, you are taking steps toward success. The key is to keep stretching with each new goal.
Daily work activities often take up all the time that can be spend working toward your goals.
These time wasters sabotage any real progress. Look out for these time-wasters:
Make sure you clearly understand and explain the expectations, responsibilities and
importance of new projects.
Understand why You put off certain activities. If the task is unpleasant, remind yourself
that you will be relieved when it's taken care of. If it's a huge or complex task, break it
down into smaller pieces.
Remember your priorities. If you're interrupted for something more important than your
current task, you may have to shift focus. Otherwise, resolve the interruption quickly or
schedule it for later.
At some point, you must decide to make a decision and move on. If you don't know what to do
next because you have so much to do, use priority lists to break your paralysis.
Many are poorly planned and conducted. You can keep meetings more productive by
coming prepared and staying focused on the meeting's goals.
A disorganized work space wastes your time. One suggestion is to keep all papers
in four folders labeled "action needed', "completed", "for others" and "undecided" This
suggestions also works well with e-mail folders.
Are you good at setting goals but not so good at
following through?
Here is a fun solution that
utilizes software and worksheets to keep you on
track.
NEXT WEEK:
Creativity: Opening your mind to new ideas
Andrew Kotulak is a contributing editor to Setting Goals For Yourself Part III in for
Unlimited Success Online' s Success Strategies newsletter. Andrew has 15 years experience in
manufacturing management in which time he has traveled far and wide improving processes and
managing teams. Andrew has recently turned his attention to the internet, operating multiple
websites providing resources for leadership, career and business success.
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