What to do When SMART Goals Don’t Work

Try the Benchmark Method

New Year’s resolutions will be on the minds of lots of people; if that’s the case, if you’re serious, you need to get goal setting.

A lot of the time, New Year’s resolutions focus on feelings and confidence, and SMART goals don’t work for something subjective, not until now, that is. SMART goals are great for goal setting, when you know how to set goals using SMART they’re awesome, but what do you do when the subject of your goal is a feeling, a perception or a judgement, something subjective, well we have the perfect solution with benchmark goal setting.

You can take something that is hard to measure and turn it into something that will work with a SMART goal. SMART goals are essential to the Thinking Focus Toolkit for Team Leaders and Managers.

Thinking Focus Toolkit

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Posted On December 30, 2021 By Ricky Muddimer In Coaching, Goals, High Performing Teams, Leadership, Management, Metacognition, Mindset, Motivation, Performance Management, Productivity, Video /

SMART goals; are you doing them right?

Need to define Smart goals? – before you do, are you doing them right? if you want to achieve what you want that is!

Smart goal-setting works, which is probably why no one has managed to reinvent them. Smart goals are the staple diet for team leaders, managers and leaders. Without smart goals, you have no idea what you’re working on, what your people are working on, or what your organisation is working on. Your future is at risk and left to chance.

In this video, Graham walks you through the smart goals process and gives a practical example. We also shared why we think most are getting it wrong, at least the order that is.

Thinking Focus Toolkit

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Posted On December 28, 2021 By Ricky Muddimer In Confidence, Engagement, Goals, High Performing Teams, Leadership, Management, Metacognition, Mindset, Motivation, Performance Management, Productivity, Video /

How do leaders create a productive workforce?

This is the last of our podcasts around our leadership model. This time we explore the leader’s role in process.

Leadership creates stability and change, and this dichotomy shines through when it comes to process. How do leaders deal with the dual roles of creating efficient and consistent approaches, while at the same time continually improving to make them better, or occasionally transforming them to create competitive advantage?

Doing both of these is something many leaders find difficult; Rob and Paul consider why this is and what you can do about it.

This podcast is part of a series about the role of leaders, exploring the nuts and bolts of what leaders need to do. It is based on a model (we created) to help aspiring leaders work out what it means to be a leader.

You can find the model, and details of all the areas at www.thinkingfocus.com/what-is-leadership

Posted On December 20, 2021 By Paul Hutchinson In Leadership, Podcasts, Productivity, The question is /

How do leaders balance technical expertise and leadership?

Continuing our series on the day to day leadership, and what is it that leaders do. This time we consider the balance between being the leader and being a subject matter expert.

Often people are asked to become leaders because of their strong technical skills; then they are expected to step back from the day-to-day and let others do the work. If they can balance the demands of expert and leader then they empower their team, providing expert direction, growing team skills and providing governance. If they get the balance wrong, they risk becoming the limit of the team’s ability.

You can find the model, and details of all the areas at www.thinkingfocus.com/what-is-leadership

Posted On December 6, 2021 By Paul Hutchinson In Leadership, Podcasts, The question is /

How to Define More Robust Goals

SMART – What each letter really means!

The SMART goals technique is arguably the most well-known of all goal-setting techniques. How to set goals is really important if you want to be more productive, have success, and ultimately achieve your goals.

The acronym S.M.A.R.T. is well used across the world. But knowing what it stands for is only the start, you need to understand the individual components to make it work for you and improve your productivity and effectiveness.

Anyone can set a goal, but if it ain’t specific, you’re saying you don’t care what you achieve or if you achieve it. Denzel Washington said, “Dreams without goals are just dreams”.

So if it’s important to you and you want it, get specific and go for it. In this video, we explore the types of measures and how to make them work for you. SMART goals are essential to the Thinking Focus Toolkit for Team Leaders and Managers. Watch this video to find out.

Thinking Focus Toolkit

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Posted On December 2, 2021 By Ricky Muddimer In Coaching, Goals, High Performing Teams, Leadership, Management, Metacognition, Mindset, Video /

How leaders create and destroy accountability?

Leaders want their followers to take accountability for their deliverables. Most leaders think about what they can do to get more accountability, yet rarely consider what they might be doing that is destroying the very accountability that they are looking for.

Paul, Ricky and Rob explore what accountability means, and how leaders can create a culture where people own things, or how they might be accidentally driving a culture where people avoid being accountable because it is seen as too risky.

You can find the model, and details of all the areas at www.thinkingfocus.com/what-is-leadership

Posted On November 21, 2021 By Paul Hutchinson In Culture, Leadership, Podcasts, The question is /

How to think different and get unstuck!

We are all subject to the insanity loop from time to time, that feeling when we seem to keep doing the same thing yet expecting a different result.

We get stuck! To get unstuck, we need to change our thinking; in this video, we explore why you get stuck and offer three easy ways to free yourself from Einstein’s insanity loop. Thinking skills are essential to the Thinking Focus Toolkit for Team Leaders and Managers.

Thinking Focus Toolkit

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Posted On November 18, 2021 By Ricky Muddimer In Confidence, High Performing Teams, Leadership, Management, Metacognition, Mindset, Productivity, Video /

How do leaders create engagement?

Another podcast exploring the role of a leader.

This time we dive into engagement. How do leaders create engage followers?

To us, engagement is more than just making sure people like working here. It is the way that leaders connect people to purpose, the team and the plan. This is an ongoing role, constantly needing updating and resetting as the team gets buffeted by day-to-day challenges.

You can find the model, and details of all the areas at www.thinkingfocus.com/what-is-leadership

Posted On November 8, 2021 By Paul Hutchinson In Leadership, Podcasts, Productivity, The question is /

Why do leaders build psychological safety for their people to perform?

This is another podcast in our series about the actual things that leaders do.

This time Richard, Rob and Ricky talk feelings! In particular, they discuss the leader’s role in managing feelings; dealing with conflict, smoothing over loss when difficult decisions need to be made and most importantly creating a psychologically safe environment where people can flourish.

Leaders who ignore the people elements of the role risk damaging their own productivity and put their underlying purpose at risk.

You can find the model, and details of all the areas at www.thinkingfocus.com/what-is-leadership

Posted On October 25, 2021 By Paul Hutchinson In Culture, Leadership, Podcasts, Productivity, The question is /

How do we shape a culture with autonomy (following the pandemic)?

The last 18 months has radically changed the way that we work. The old culture no longer applies, but the temporary culture we have been working with cannot move us forward.

Now is a time for cultural re-set for many organisations, but how can leaders shape this cultural change, to encompass the best bits from lockdown working; driving automony, collaboration and accountability.

Ricky, Rich and Paul consider how leaders can become role models and create cultural standards by lifting the culture and empowering, and not dumbing it down for everyone when it gets challenging.

Posted On October 11, 2021 By Paul Hutchinson In Culture, Leadership /