From childhood, a person hears about the need to choose the right goal. Parents, teachers, mentors, all as one, assure that a person’s success and performance depends on this. The more significant the goal, the richer and more interesting life is, the more meaning it is endowed with. But how to find the right direction? How to understand where to move? How to determine a goal that will truly motivate? And in general, is it as important as they say it is? Is its importance overestimated? Is it possible to become successful without goal setting skills? What obstacles face a person who has no goal?
What is a goal
The word “goal” often appears on the pages of psychological magazines, manuals for achieving success, and business literature. Everyone around us teaches us to be purposeful, to care for and cherish our goals, almost to pray for them. And quite justified. A goal is a very powerful lever for the personal development of an individual and evolution in general, if used skillfully.
To put it extremely simply, a goal is the future result of satisfying a current need. That is, first you realize your need, and then formulate a goal based on it.
Let's say you get to work by bus and get very tired on the road. When fatigue reaches a critical level, you need a personal car. You think it over carefully, weigh the pros and cons, evaluate your capabilities, and in the project you have a ready goal - to buy a Hyundai Solaris in the next six months.
The goal is always the end point of the path. By formulating it, we answer the question: “What do I want?”
Notes
- Dobrokhotov A. L.
Purpose // New philosophical encyclopedia / Institute of Philosophy RAS; National social-scientific fund; Pred. scientific-ed. Council V. S. Stepin, deputy chairmen: A. A. Guseinov, G. Yu. Semigin, student. secret A. P. Ogurtsov. — 2nd ed., rev. and additional - M.: Mysl, 2010. - ISBN 978-5-244-01115-9. - Sergeev K. A., Slinin Ya. A.
Nature and mind: an ancient paradigm. - L.: Leningrad State University, 1991 - P.33-34 - Golovin A. Yu.
Dictionary of a practical psychologist. Minsk: Harvest, 1998. - ↑ 12
Target. Political education (inaccessible link since 02/05/2015 [1357 days]) - Menkov A.V., Ostreynikovsky V.A.
Formation of goals // Theoretical foundations of automated control. - M.: Onyx Publishing House, 2005. - ISBN 5-488-00129-8. - Purpose // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron: in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - St. Petersburg, 1890-1907.
- Systems theory and system analysis in the management of organizations: Handbook: textbook. manual / ed. V. N. Volkova, A. A. Emelyanova. - M.: Finance and Statistics, 2006. - 848 p.
- Reshetov I.V.
Algorithm for solving management problems and its application in the innovation process [Text] / I.V. Reshetov // Problems of theory and practice of management. - M.: Federal State Unitary Enterprise Publishing House "Izvestia", 2009. - No. 11. - P. 83 - 93. - Panov M.M.
Performance assessment and company management system based on KPI. - M.: Infra-M, 2013. - 255 p. - (Simple, Brief, Quick). — 500 copies. — ISBN 978-5-16-005781-1
What is a task and how is it different from a goal?
A task, unlike a goal, does not arise directly from a need. First, a need appears, then a goal is formulated, and only then a task. By putting it before himself, a person answers the question: “What needs to be done to achieve the goal?”
In the previous paragraph, we formulated the goal - to buy a car. Now we need to find out what separates us from it. If there are no problems with money, then you can define the task as “withdraw money from the account and come to the car dealership.” If there is not enough money, then it can be formulated as “take out a loan.” Or a more humane option - “save n rubles every month”, after all, we have 6 months in stock.
Depending on the situation, the same action can be both a goal and a task. Let's imagine that a certain man decided to go work as a taxi driver. For this purpose, he needs a personal car, and he decides to buy a Hyundai Solaris. What was a goal for us became a task for him. Therefore, it is impossible to distinguish these two concepts only by external signs. Context plays a decisive role.
Properly set tasks help achieve goals easily and quickly. Large ones are broken down into smaller ones and carried out in stages.
Types of goals
Types of goals are divided into the following categories:
1. According to sources:
- external – aimed at mass participation, globality (the company’s reputation in the market);
- internal – those that are focused on solving the needs of the company itself, the ability to carry out its functions.
2. Difficulties:
- simple;
- complex.
3. By importance:
- strategic;
- tactical.
4. By timing:
- long-term (more than five years);
- medium (1-5 years);
- short-term (less than a year).
5. By content:
- administrative;
- economic;
- production;
- marketing;
- educational purposes and others.
6. According to the form of expression:
- the result is tied to quantity (obtaining specific coefficients and indicators - the amount of revenue, the volume of turnover);
- carrying a certain quality (a friendly atmosphere, team spirit, which is found, for example, in team building. Or the goal of a math lesson is knowledge, and not just the answer to an equation).
How to correctly set tasks based on goals
We discussed in detail how to set goals in a separate article - don’t be lazy and read it. Here we will highlight the main points when setting tasks.
When the goal has already been formulated, you need to analyze what you need to achieve it. These could be material resources, some knowledge and skills, human qualities, connections, etc. Actions to fill these gaps will be your current tasks.
For example, you set yourself a goal to lose 5 kg. What do you need for this? Firstly, buy a membership to a fitness club, secondly, create a diet, and thirdly, reconsider your lifestyle.
Make sure that tasks do not conflict with each other. They can be very different, but they must lead to the same result. After completing each task, be sure to check the plan and adjust it if necessary. The system must be flexible and responsive, otherwise you will constantly slip.
The task always involves some kind of action and is practical in nature. It should be as specific as possible. No vague language is allowed. That is, if you decide to adhere to a certain diet, then you must immediately create this diet and acquire the necessary products.
Some goals are achieved easily and quickly. Some people have to work hard on it. I recommend breaking large-scale and long-term goals into subgoals and achieving them step by step.
Goal functions
The basic function of the goal is the transfer of information between participants in the management process. With the help of goals, we transform ideas into a complete, self-sufficient and understandable form.
In the interaction between a manager and a subordinate, the goal is the “consolidation” of management intention, which is transmitted to the employee. Therefore, it is very important here that the formulation of the goal is as correct as possible and corresponds to the existing context.
Goal in the control system
- brings clarity and transparency to the management process (both for managers and subordinates);
- ensures the necessary coordination of actions between elements of the organization;
- serves as a yardstick for measuring performance and progress;
- minimizes redundancy in activities and resources.
Goal in Project Management
- describes the parameters of the achieved result;
- determines the list of necessary works;
- cuts off unnecessary actions;
- outlines the circle of interested parties.
Purpose as a criterion of correctness
Goals can become a criterion for the correctness of actions and actions. For example, if the goals of the system (for example, of a company) are determined only by enrichment and improvement of commercial indicators, then actions in this direction will be considered “correct”. Highly moral actions without potential profit here will rightly be considered secondary or even “wrong.”
Examples
Let's consolidate the material with specific examples from different areas of life.
Example 1. Moving
Natasha has long dreamed of emigrating to the West. She is fluent in English, so she primarily considers English-speaking countries. And so she finally made up her mind and set a goal: “To move to live in the USA in the next 2 years.”
Tasks:
- collect all the necessary information;
- prepare documents for obtaining a visa;
- save money for the first time;
- find housing and work;
- make useful contacts, etc.
Example 2. Business expansion
Alexey is an entrepreneur. He has his own Italian plumbing store. Business is booming, and Alexey is thinking about opening branches in other cities. Having collected all the necessary information, he set a goal for himself: “Open branches in two cities within a year.”
Tasks:
- choose 2 cities and study the plumbing market in them;
- find partners to implement the project;
- develop a business plan;
- find and rent suitable premises;
- hire workers, etc.
Example 3. Repair
Sveta and Dmitry recently got married and bought an apartment with pre-finishing finishing. The primary goal for them is to make repairs in the next three months and move into their cozy nest.
Tasks:
- order a design project;
- calculate the estimate;
- purchase materials;
- hire workers.
Example 4. New profession
Artem has been working as a trainer at a fitness club for three years. He recently suffered a back injury, and now he finds work difficult. The guy decides to change his field of activity and learn to earn money through mental labor. To do this, he sets a goal: “Master the Java programming language.”
Tasks:
- choose a suitable online course;
- save money;
- think about how to combine training with current work;
- buy books on programming, etc.
Comparison
What is the difference between a function and a task? So, both tasks and functions are assigned to a person either by a leader, manager, or independently. However, the categories differ from each other in the final result that a person must achieve. The function is performed continuously or periodically (water delivery to residential buildings), and the result can only be measured in a certain unit of time. Problems have a completely different quality: each of them either has a specific solution (one or several), or it does not exist (an unsolvable problem).
A certain function can be performed either by a person (repairing a heating main, setting up Internet access) or by a mechanism or program (checking the integrity of a pipeline, water purification). A task is always faced by a being endowed with consciousness; to solve it it is necessary to use knowledge or experience. Inanimate objects and mechanisms perform routine tasks only by fulfilling their functions.
A task consists of such mandatory elements as a controversial situation, a problem and a solution. If it is not possible to answer a challenge, it is considered unsolvable. A function is a process that includes rules, an algorithm of actions and an expected result. Violation of the given sequence will make implementation impossible. The goal can be achieved in various ways, including new ways.
At the same time, to implement tasks and perform functions, resources (material, labor) are required, which may be sufficient, insufficient or excessive. The performer's freedom of action is limited by certain rules, violation of which entails negative consequences. Tasks and functions are necessary to achieve global goals set for an individual, a work group, or society.
Typical mistakes when formulating goals and objectives
At the initial stage, when you are just learning how to set goals correctly, some difficulties may arise. Let's look at common mistakes so you can be prepared for them:
- The target is too vague. I said that the goal may be less specific, but there is a limit to everything. Avoid vague formulations like “become better”, “earn more”, “travel a lot”, etc. They will not lead you anywhere.
- The goal is too ambitious and will require a myriad of tasks to achieve. For example, you just graduated from college and are already aiming to run for president. It is better to break such a global goal into several subgoals and focus on achieving the nearest one.
- The task duplicates the goal instead of expanding on it. That is, it does not answer the question “What needs to be done?” and doesn't help you move forward.
- The task contradicts the goal. For example, the goal is to save money for a car, and the task is to buy a new phone. In this case, they pull in different directions.
Try to avoid these mistakes and approach the goal-setting process very responsibly. Spare no effort and time to develop your goals, and all your expenses will be more than repaid.
How many goals can you set?
In the table of spheres and values, we have obtained results that serve as long-term goals for us. I got several of them. And the question arises - how many goals can you set for yourself?
And here it is important to understand that you cannot take on several goals at the same time.
You need to choose one main goal and work on it every day until it is achieved. Only after this can you take a break, rejoice in your victory and take on the next goal.
This is another huge mistake when a person is overwhelmed with ideas and energy. I would like to take on all promising projects at once! But in the end, none of the endeavors achieve normal results.
You may object, because many successful businessmen have several successful projects.
Yes it is!
But all these projects are launched one by one and this is very important.
When your project becomes profitable, in most cases it no longer requires large time and financial expenditures; all that remains is to fuel it a little. And a huge amount of time is freed up, which can be used to launch other projects.
There is also one very interesting model - assigning managers to successful running projects. This move frees you up almost completely.
