Goals are what we want and are as personal as a fingerprint, they propel us forward. Coaching helps clients manifest what they want, have sweet dreams, get started and move forward.
Coaches help clients explore the present and design the future, accompanying them to where they want to go, giving them more options and resources for their journey.
It refers to two types of goals, although they can be mixed:
- Objective - outcome: Your final destination where you are going.
- Objective - process: Your journey, how you will get there to get back. The goal-to-outcome plan consists of a series of sub-goals that make up the journey.
Golden rules for defining and setting goals
Goals should be expressed in positive terms:
- Outcome goals should be expressed in positive terms, stating what you want, not what you don't want or don't want to avoid. Sometimes clients tell their life that something is wrong by saying what they don't want.
- This rule only applies to performance objectives. The destination must be positive, in turn, the meta-process can be defined in a negative sense.
Key questions for customers:
- What do you want instead of what you have?
The objectives must be precise:
- Objectives should be as precise as possible, which is easy in certain situations [such as wanting a new car], but with abstract objects, it can be more complicated. For example, if you want a better relationship or more confidence. In this case, it is better to be precise with tests that allow you to check whether you have achieved your goal.
- For example, if the goal is confidence, this means being able to speak in front of a crowd for 10 minutes without shivering or thinking much about it the day before, the speech must be confirmed as acceptable by at least two people.
- For tangible purposes, it must be specified within appropriate limits. Perfectionists are not only too specific, but will not settle for anything different.
- For long-term goals, it is difficult to be specific, the closer the time, the more specific you can be. You can say when, where and with whom you will achieve them.
- For abstract objects you should not try to determine the outcome, it is better to specify evidence that lets you know you have achieved the desired goal.
One thing to clarify is the time scale:
- How long does it take me to get there?
This applies to both the route and the final destination.
Key question:
- What exactly do you want?
- Can you describe it more precisely?
Decide how you will receive testing and goal feedback:
- It is important to determine the evidence, as it will make you feel that you have achieved the objective. When you see, smell or hear X, Y and Z, you know you have succeeded.
During the goal process, feedback will let you know if you are on track to achieve your goal-result. Not paying attention to it means you may miss the goal. The plane takes off for Havana, the pilot not only attends the plane during take-off, but also controls the conditions of the flight throughout its duration, thus ensuring that the plane reaches its destination, i.e. he pays attention to the factors that go towards his goal, it is important, even if there are no unexpected situations. In fact, this is what prevents undesirable situations from occurring, the maintenance of that attentive posture.
Some questions for clients to think about in their comments:
- How will you measure your progress toward your goal? It is tested in two ways, one against yourself [measure performance, then measure and compare] and against someone else [if you want to be the best in a field]. You don't have to do it, only others get worse].
- How often will you measure your progress? Feedback should be collected continuously to ensure we are on the right track.
Key question:
- How do you know you have achieved your goal?
- What points will you get along the way?
- How will you know you are on the right path to your goal?
- How often will you check that you are on the right track?
Organize your resources: You need your resources during your journey, not when you arrive, which could be:
- Public: books, technology, audio and video with needed information.
- Contacts: Family, friends, even contacts you haven't seen in a long time.
- Time: >Do you have time to achieve your goals? If not, >how will you get it and, if there is a delay, how will you handle it?
- Model: >Do you know anyone who has achieved this >What can you learn from this person or organization? It could even be fictional characters or the work of someone who has achieved this goal.
- Personal qualities: >What personal qualities do you have or need to develop to achieve your goals?
Be proactive:
- This principle applies to the journey, not the final destination. You must feel the cause, not the effect, it is you who must act, not others.
- Words can describe how a person acts and two ways are considered. One is "active voice," meaning when you do something, be the subject of the verb ["I gave the presentation, I set my goal, I did this"], and the other is "passive voice," emphasizing what was done, not who did ["Goal scored, presentation done"].
- Clients are sometimes uncomfortable taking ownership of goals, so they use "passive voice."
Some key questions to ask to ensure that clients use the "active voice":
- How much control do you have over this target?
- What are you going to do with it?
- What are you going to do to achieve this goal?
- What can you offer others to inspire them to help you?
Attention to the broader consequences:
- From the outset, we must know that every goal we pursue has personal consequences, but it can also occur in the environment. This rule applies to both the "route" and the "destination". The question is: >is this destination worth it? >Were some people important to you hurt? >Will it be useful? >What will be the personal cost to others?
- For the journey, it is better to analyze whether one of the means used in turn affects others. Sometimes family and friends can get hurt. >What is the cost of your goals? >Are you willing to pay this price?
- These and the above questions can be key questions for the training process.
Prepare an action plan:
- When you identify the steps to achieve your goal, you have set foot on your dream. You have to be motivated, the goals have to be hard but realistic. You have to work hard, but also know that it is achievable.
- When a goal is long term, it can be a daunting process, so break it down into smaller steps, this is known as the "roadmap".
