You and I both know there’s power in setting goals…

There’s clarity in setting goals.

There’s focus in setting goals.

But what sort of goals?

There’s a very strong argument to suggest financial (money) goals are self-defeating.

They undermine your future performance. Sounds weird I know…

I recently read a wonderful piece by Roy H Williams (AKA the Wizard Of Ads).

Here’s Roy’s argument against money/cash/profit targets or goals or objectives:

“Money fails as a compass because it can be found in every direction. Guiding directives and unifying principles are never merely financial.” 

If stacks of cash is your only goal you’re likely to be distracted at every turn.

As Roy puts it:

“You can’t navigate a ship by studying the wind and waves. Fix your gaze on your goal, a non-negotiable, fixed position that can never change. Let that be your lighthouse, your reference point, your North Star.”

 At just short of 460 words Roy’s article is well worth the reading time.

 Certainly if you leave port without a fixed port of call to aim for you’ll be at the beck and call of the wind and sea. By definition monetary targets alone are not a good compass.

So…

Achieving crystal clarity on your firm’s future (vision) and your firm’s operating principles (values) provides an additional and powerful compass to guide your firm.

Getting the buy-in from your key players also has a big part to play.

How would you describe your lighthouse guiding your behaviour and your team’s behaviour?

What are the ‘directives and unifying principles’ steering your ship?