“Nothing limits achievement like small thinking, nothing expands possibilities like unleashed imagination” William Arthur Ward
The Christmas carols have started, the Myer windows are in full display and the Christmas madness is upon us. It happens every year and yet it always surprises me how quickly it this time of year comes around. You’d think I’d be onto it by now!
I’m just about to sit down with one of my teams (well my clients team) and hear what they have achieved in the last quarter, what they haven’t and why. The entire team is involved, top to bottom, no-one is left out and we do this each quarter in line with the objectives that were set at the start of the year. We’ll then start planning for the new year and develop a workshop for January with a new focus ensuring this team is set for 2016 and has clarity around what is expected. We’ve done this for a few years now and it works well. They’re a great team and have a high level of awareness for where they are at – all of them.
If I asked you what you’ve achieved for 2015 could you articulate it clearly? Could you tell me what you’ve achieved, what you haven’t and why? It’s powerful stuff to be aware of particularly at this time of year when the festivities kick in and we seem to be in a constant state of celebration bouncing around from party to party, catch up to catch up.
Are you celebrating simply because it’s this time of year or do you have something to really celebrate?
It’s empowering and also critical to know in business what you and/or your team are good at and what you can leverage to create even more success. It’s also critical to understand where the gaps are so you can plug them as best you can. However, unless you have clarity around this you’re powerless to do anything about it. And to have clarity you need a clear line of sight around what’s really happening in your business or your career.
Business is fast, competitive and challenging. It’s all too easy to get caught up in the vortex of busy and become pragmatic, short sighted and tactical. When what we really need to be is focused, visionary, aware and agile.
What do you need to change to ensure next year is better for you? What can you leverage to your benefit? What must stop?
Take the time out to do this for you and your business. With the current state of play in business we can’t afford not to put the time and effort into shaping what our future needs to look like and have clarity on how to get there. And if you take a leaf from my clients book you might like to involve your entire team and utilise the incredible intelligence you have at your finger tips to shape your ‘how’. This encourages ownership and as the saying goes – two heads are better than one. Just imagine ten of them thinking big !