We were driving across Florida and having a conversation about one wish… you know the game, “If you were given one wish, what would you ask for?” It is fun to leave reality for a moment and consider a Genie who would grant that magic something isn’t it. Have you ever done it in the work place? If you were asked, “What is your one wish for your job in 2015, how would you answer the question?
While my “life wish” might be less tangible, when I hone in on work wishes, they are often more attainable. They are grounded in things that I can accomplish or at least pursue. Notice, I say work “wishes”, not “wish” because it often comes with lots and lots of ideas. Can you get it to one wish for your work success in 2015? Is it about people, process, payment, tools or talent? While some of you may wish to “move along” other individuals, work wishes work best when there is no magic required. I will assume the wish in your life is something that could be accomplished by you and for you.
Deciding on a clear wish is step one, actions that will help the wish come true is the next step. Here are some ideas to take that wish and turn it into a goal that you can accomplish.
- Write it down. If you are like me, I do better when I commit my goals to a document. Could it be the screen-saver on your tablet or a small card inside your portfolio or a post-it on your monitor? Spend a minute each morning looking at it.
- Break down the achievement process. Most of my goals are way too big to accomplish all at once. Small steps are the way to go. For example, have you ever been overwhelmed by a data-set, but if you look at a small portion at a time you are able to make sense of the larger body of numbers. I need to break big goals into bites that I can chew- monthly, quarterly – what works best for you?
- Review your progress. It’s like getting on the scale. (Ugh, did I really say that?) Most of us need a measure to know if we are getting closer to success. How will you measure if you are getting closer to that one goal? This is important for me from a focus perspective. It is easy to move from the one wish to the wish-of-the-week. If your wish for the year is really an important one, then making measurable progress needs to be a priority.
- Find a Genie of sorts. While the wishes we are going to accomplish at work generally come from effort and hard work there is no reason it has be done alone. Who might you enlist to help move your wish closer to reality? Do you need to speak with other like-minded professionals? Or, talk to a leader about recommendations for getting what you need. I recently worked with a team that really needed a CRM tool. In their decentralized sales process, each had asked their individual leader and been turned down. The chance for success will come with working together on this one.
- Reflect on past success. Consider when you have been successful in the past and steal some of your oldies but goodies for the new wish. While times change, there are often steps that you have harnessed in the past that will propel you in the current challenge.
Sometimes our days are filled with too many reminders of what we are unable to do in the way we desire. Likely that’s due to the over-achiever in us. Likewise, you may be saying, just one wish for the year feels sort of small, but when you consider it is that one thing that you really want, it is totally worth the focus. I am going to work to find my inner Genie, and I hope you will too!