Small commitments to big objectives.

I must confess that I am very fortunate. Thanks to my current job and all the work I’ve done as  blogger and speaker in the last couple of years, I’ve had the incredible opportunity to meet a lot of very interesting people. People from different organizations and industries; with different jobs and callings and very different origins and education. All different but all with one thing in common: BIG DREAMS

They all have big ambitions and clear visions of how high they want to get. And they have frequently shared with me that they want to be the best in their trade, the number one, the stars: “We want to be the most important digital marketing agency in the market”, “we aim to be the first company in our category to fully digitize our business”, “we want to be number one on sales”, etc.

But just as often I’ve seen the same problem: Not all of them are prepared to accomplish their dreams of grandeur.

Many claim to not only be talking but to actually be doing what it takes to deliver on their vision. But are they really doing it or do they just think they are doing it?

I could share dozens of stories when I’ve heard leaders say they are really willing to do whatever is necessary to accomplish their vision of being the best, the first, the stars. They deliver really inspiring speeches that after a couple of days end up dispersed in the air, forgotten by their team, hidden under the chaos of tasks and daily problems, overlapped by sales quotas and P&L reports or simply lost in the lack of experience of the people who is supposed to help achieve those goals.

That’s why, after giving a lot of thought to this matter, I’ve concluded that the best answer to BIG OBJECTIVES are small commitments. Leaving all speeches aside and starting taking the necessary small but sure steps that will get us to our goal.

Now I know this sounds easier than it is done. And that’s why I wanted to share 10 steps (or rather small commitments) I believe are key to achieve our dreams:

1. Define your intention. They say that having a clear intention is half the work, because from the moment we do so, our mind starts looking for ways to achieve that intention.
2. Clearly understand your place in your market or segment. Know what strengths and capabilities you will need to develop to meet your goals. And make sure your objective is congruent with the vision and mission of your organization.
3. Share your dream with the members of your team and ensure that they share the very same ambition and passion. If your team does not make your dream their own, they will always put it second to their own priorities.
4. Make sure you have the right talent for the tasks and work you’ll need to get done to meet your goal. Identify their strengths and capabilities and help them maximize them. Provide them with the proper training and coaching and give them the right tools for their job. Develop great talent and recruit it as well.
5. Define what steps your company will have to take in order to get to where you want to. Understand that even though some can happen simultaneously, others need to happen sequentially.
6. Establish a Critical Path Schedule and assign timings for every small commitment or step that your team will have to achieve.
7. Review your status frequently but please do not do so all of the time. Define very specific moments to do it. Understand that every path can have its detours and challenges, so be flexible and work around each situation.
8. Don’t just make it about the money for the company. Make it about something else and find ways to publicly recognize and even reward those people who are helping the most. Help them understand the benefits they, as employees, will get out of your big dream. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard team members at different companies, say “I can see how this deal will make a lot of money for the company, but what’s in it for me? They’ll still pay me the same, only now I have to learn new skills and have more work”. Let them see how having a new set of skill will not only help them do a better job but will make more qualified for future opportunities inside and beyond your organization.
9. Review in your mind your objective every day and visualize yourself and your team achieving it. Find a way to review these objectives everyday, make it a motto, adopt it as part of your vision, create a vision board that anyone and everyone can easily see and read.
10. But please do not let your great intention become your obsession.

Come to think of it, the very best thing about this list is that you can apply it to your personal life as well!