Useful questions but where do you start with such a big agenda? Perhaps by asking the most important question first: why does goal setting matter in the first place?
One answer is proposed by both Charles Handy and Stephen Covey. They suggest that what we all want is to make a difference, to contribute.
Asking our goal setting questions matters because they help us to start thinking about how that might be possible.
We'll come back to Handy and Covey shortly but first, let's consider our 8 goal setting questions.
We've organised our questions to help you think more about who you are, what you're doing, and what you'd really love to do.
We start with a question which is short but powerful: why am I here? It may be difficult to answer but it's important, so take as much time as you need. Answering this question is the key to what Handy and Covey suggest is so critical - our need to make a difference.
8 Goal Setting Questions - a Framework for Planning
Why am I here? If you find this difficult to answer, try answering these to give you some ideas: What is my sense of purpose? What is meaningful for me? What moves me? What is my passion? What do I care about? What need can I serve?
Where have I been? – What past experience have I got?
Where am I now? – What kind of person / manager am I? What abilities do I possess? What am I good at? What are my strengths and weaknesses? What do I love doing?
Where do I want to get to? – What kind of person / manager do I want to become? What abilities do I want to develop? What learning goals shall I set? What are the organisational goals in which I can make a difference? Which knowledge and skills areas do I need to focus on to deliver both my personal objectives and benefits for my organisation? What is my conscience directing me towards?
How shall I get there? – What learning and development actions do I need to undertake? What resources will I need to do perform them? How shall I overcome obstacles to my learning?
How will I know if I have arrived? – How do I measure achievement of goals?
Is it money? Is it promotion? Is it another measure of success?
What's holding me back? - What's stopping me from doing what I want to do?
Who can help me? - Who can teach me? From whom can I learn?
You may want to write down your thinking and answers to these goal setting questions. Writing things down is a useful way to make vague ideas or aspirations into firm plans. It's also essential to ensure you capture these, even if it takes you a while longer to make sense of them.
If you want to think more about doing what you love, our article Goal Setting Tip: Do What You Love, provides plenty of suggestions and a useful model to apply.
Making a Difference and Discovering your "Voice"
How then do Handy and Covey explain the importance of wanting to make a difference? For Handy there are three steps to finding meaning in what we do. Firstly, there is the need for survival. The basics of life must be in place before you can begin to address your purpose in life. Secondly, you must establish your identity. Handy thinks we must prove ourselves in the world, getting noticed, "earn a label in life". Once these are addressed, you can continue to his third step, "to make a difference to the world in some way and to make a difference to other people."
Covey's beliefs echo Handy's ideas. He thinks there is a great yearning, in both individuals and in organizations. This is the need to discover a true "voice," to matter, to make a difference, to find greatness. When we do that, we feel more fulfilled and engaged with the world around us and consequently, with our role in that world. This is the main argument in Covey's book "The 8th Habit". Did Covey forget or miss a habit from his best selling book "7 Habits"? Well not exactly. The 8th habit is more a tool for using the 7 habits to create something of significance. As the title suggests, to move from effectiveness to greatness.
Perhaps the key to this is finding your "voice" or your calling. This is best done by matching your passions with your strengths. Achieving goals that satisfy your mind, heart, body and spirit is perhaps another way to move from effectiveness to greatness. Covey suggest 4 questions you should ask yourself:
What are you good at? That's your mind.
What do you love doing? That’s your heart.
What need can you serve? That’s the body.
What is life asking of you? What gives your life meaning and purpose? What do you feel like you should be doing? In short, what is your conscience directing you to do? That is your spirit.
"People are internally motivated by their own four needs: to live, to love, to learn, to leave a legacy."
Finding where you want to make a difference, finding your voice, is not easy. You'll probably need to allow plenty of time to fully think through our 8 goal setting questions. Then be sure to re-visit and update them regularly.
Handy's views on developing yourself form the basis of our Goal Setting Activity article: 5 Steps to Self-Development at work.
Or you could go to Covey's website, from which we've sourced some of the comments on this page. In particular, you may want to read the article
Finding your "Voice"
If you found our goal setting questions useful or interesting please share it by adding it to your favourite social bookmarking site:
And be sure to subscribe to our RSS feed for regular updates from the Happy Manager!
