In What They Don’t Teach You At Harvard Business School: Notes From A Street-Smart Executive by Mark H. McCormack, the author tells of a study conducted on graduates of the 1979 Harvard MBA program. Those graduates were asked, “Have you set clear, written goals for your future and made plans to accomplish them?” Only three percent of the graduates had written goals and plans; 13 percent had goals, but they were not in writing; and a whopping 84 percent had no specific goals at all. Ten years later, the members of the class were interviewed again, and the findings, while somewhat predictable, were nonetheless astonishing…

In spite of such proof of success, most people don’t have clear, measurable, time-bounded goals.

In the bestseller Goals! How to Get Everything You Want-Faster Than You Ever Thought Possible, Brian Tracy teaches how to identify in the clearest terms the things you want out of life and how to make a plan to help achieve those things. He includes the following list.

Four Reasons Why People Don’t Set Goals

• They don’t realize the importance of goals. If the people with whom you spend the most time—family, friends, colleagues and so forth—are not clear about and committed to specific goals, there is a chance that you won’t be, either.
• They don’t know how to set goals. Some set goals that are too general. In reality, these are fantasies common to everyone. On the other hand, goals are clear, written, specific and measurable.
• They fear failure. Failure hurts, but it is often necessary to experience failure in order to achieve the greatest success. Do not unconsciously sabotage yourself by refusing to set goals for which you might fail.
• They fear rejection. People are often afraid that if they are unsuccessful at achieving a goal, others will be critical of them. This is remedied by keeping your goals to yourself at the outset; let others see your results and achievements once you’ve accomplished your goals. 

Make a habit of daily goal setting AND achieving, for the rest of your life.

Focus on the things you want, rather than the things you don’t want.

Resolve to be a goal-seeking organism, moving unerringly toward the things that are important to you.

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Have these tips motivated you to set some goals? Do you have any goal-setting success stories that you’d like to share? Please speak your mind below.

Read more about Planning or Leadership.

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About Judy: Judy Mackenzie, MBA, CHRP, CEC PCC, owns and operates TEVO Consulting Inc. (www.tevosmallbiz.com), providing services and guidance to small and medium businesses. TEVO’s mission is to assist companies in reaching their strategic goals by developing leadership and people management systems that allow employees to be at their best. Judy believes engaged employees are fundamental to business success, and she designs support and management systems to help people and companies achieve their full potential.