eTip: Aligning Your Network with Your Goals - Part One
As the New Year approaches, we usually make new or change goals we wish to accomplish. How do you align your network to help you accomplish your goals?
1. Be realistic about your goals.
Should you decide to obtain more clients this year, create a moderate schedule to accomplish your goals. Gaining one or two more clients a month is more realistic than trying to gain three to five more clients every two months.
Create a list of the benefits you will gain by accomplishing your goals. Plan how you are going to accomplish your goals with daily and weekly action steps. Create a start date and a deadline date. By having a defined plan to accomplish your goals, your networking contacts can best assist you to accomplish your goals.
2. Ask more than one networking contact to keep you accountable to your goals.
One of the best ways to accomplish goals is have more than one person keep you accountable. You should always have a "coach," a "cheerleader," and a "mentor" to help you accomplish your goals.
For each goal, select three people in your network to perform the various roles, so that they know specifically what they are to do for you. Make sure their personalities fit with the roles you ask them to perform. The more specific tasks you ask from them, the less overwhelming you'll be to them.
Pick someone in your network that is best at motivating and coaching to be your "coach." He/she will keep you on track to accomplish the daily and weekly action steps. Give him/her a copy of your daily and weekly action steps, your start dates and deadline dates, and the list of benefits you will gain by accomplishing your goals. He/she will help you focus on completing your action steps, and will ignore your complaining and whining. He/she will also help you adjust your action steps after you provide feedback from the meetings you have with your mentor.
Secondly, pick someone in your network that is best at giving encouragement and is uplifting to be your "cheerleader". He/she will encourage you when you are doing well. He/she will also energize and cheer you on when you are not doing your best. Ask your "cheerleader" to call you at least twice a week, and ask how and when to best contact him/her when you are feeling down and unmotivated.
Lastly, pick someone in your network that is best to mentor you in accomplishing your goals. He/she will be the "been there, done that" person. He/she will ask the questions that get you pondering and reflecting on the action steps you take, and will advise you on how best to approach the challenges you encounter as you work to accomplish your goals. Plan to meet in person with your "mentor" weekly or once every two weeks to discuss the outcomes and challenges to accomplish your goals.
3. Completing your goals.
As you work to accomplish your goals, you will discover growth in your skill sets, your creativeness, and strength in your overall resolve. Your new discoveries will not have been attained alone. Acknowledging and thanking those who will have helped you should be your final steps to accomplishing your goals. Consider taking your "coach", "cheerleader" and "mentor" out to dinner together to celebrate and to thank them, if they are all local to you. Thank you cards and small gifts will also be appreciated if you cannot get them all together to celebrate.
Having others help you is not a weakness. People generally enjoy helping others and enjoy being part of something positive. Having your networking contacts assist you in accomplishing your goals strengthens your network.
© 2007 nPower Consulting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.