| I truly believe in the practice of writing goals. I | | | | go to work when I feel like it.' You could do that, |
| believe that setting goals is a critical step to | | | | but it may not be long before you find yourself |
| achieving results. To me, there are three words | | | | without a job. The job brings with it specific |
| synonymous with achieving desired results: goals, | | | | responsibilities. Each job has a purpose and tasks |
| systems and accountability. | | | | or responsibilities it is required to achieve. These |
| Let's look back at your school days. Where I | | | | responsibilities are sometimes called Key |
| went to high school, we had seven classes per | | | | Performance Indicators and are often written in |
| day. Each class had a start and finish time allowing | | | | the employees Job Description. |
| five minutes between each class to get to the | | | | The company has set a goal for each job: the |
| next class. We were given a timetable at the | | | | Job Description and Key Performance Indicators. |
| start of the year. The timetable told us our class | | | | The company then creates systems to enable |
| times, the subject, our teacher, the room number | | | | that job to be performed competently: work |
| and a map of how to get to the room. I have | | | | roster, operational procedures, recruitment of |
| never been a high school teacher but I imagine | | | | experienced staff, staff training, operational |
| each one of our teachers had a plan of what | | | | meetings. The result: many employees perform |
| they had to cover over the year. They followed | | | | well in their roles. If the employee didn't turn up at |
| a curriculum detailing what had to be covered. | | | | the required time every day, or if they did not |
| You may not have thought of it like this before, | | | | complete the job they were hired to do, there |
| but the system of school is a good example of | | | | are certain consequences: they may lose their |
| well-structured goal setting. The school has goals | | | | job, lose their weekly income, disharmony within |
| that each student in each school level must | | | | the team may begin to foster. |
| achieve by the end of the year in order to | | | | So why do we successfully get through school? |
| advance to the next level. The school has | | | | Why do we successfully perform in our roles? I |
| systems set up to give each student the best | | | | believe one of the major factors is accountability. |
| chance of achieving this: for example the school | | | | Who are you accountable to in school? Your |
| curriculum detailing what must be covered in a | | | | parents: They have sent, and paid for you to go |
| specific year, a class timetable detailing what | | | | to school: you don't want to disappoint them. |
| specific subjects are to be taught at specific | | | | Society: There is a societal expectation that you |
| times of the day, qualified teachers competent to | | | | must achieve a high school education. The |
| deliver the requirements of the school curriculum, | | | | system: 'The system' expects you to finish your |
| learning resources that provide the information | | | | education. Yourself: You want to make sure you |
| the student needs to learn, tests and projects to | | | | progress to the next level with your friends, or at |
| assess students progress. | | | | higher levels you need a high final score to get |
| The school has set a goal for each year: the | | | | into the right university for your selected career. |
| school curriculum. The school then creates | | | | Who are you accountable to at work: Your |
| systems to enable that goal to be achieved: | | | | employer: They pay you a wage each week. In |
| timetables, learning resources, teachers, tests and | | | | exchange for money, you put in a good days |
| projects. The result: most students successfully | | | | work. Your family: Your family is dependent on |
| complete the year, as long as they are willing to | | | | your job security and wage. So what is it about |
| conform to the system. | | | | structured goals (school and work) that work? |
| Let's look at a regular 9:00 am to 5:00 pm job. It | | | | They have a goal, systems and a method to |
| is a requirement of the job that you start work | | | | make people accountable to achieve the desired |
| every day at 9:00 am. You can't wake in the | | | | result. If we applied those same principles to our |
| morning and say, 'hmmm, I feel like a sleep-in, I'll | | | | personal life...imagine what we could achieve! |