Your 2023 Goals
Most workforces prize analytics over emotions. In fact, recent research from Leadership IQ reveals that only about a quarter of people consider themselves emotional communicators. But when it comes to goal setting, experiencing emotions about your goal is crucial to its success.
Think about the business or career goal(s) you set for 2023. Now ask yourself which of these two statements best describes you:
- When I think about my 2023 goals, I don't get emotional, goal-setting is a more analytical process.
- When I think about my 2023 goals, I feel really strong emotions.
In the study, Are SMART Goals Dumb?, we learned that employees and leaders are pretty evenly split between those two responses. But here's the big discovery: The people who felt "really strong emotions" also felt twice as much urgency to start and complete their goals.
The people who felt strong emotions were twice as likely to say that they "feel such an intense sense of urgency to attain their goal that postponing or pausing even one day is not an option." That's why having a strong emotional connection to your goals is important; it's not about feelings for the sake of feelings, rather, your feelings double the urgency you feel to achieve your goals.
Whenever you're setting a goal for yourself or coaching someone else, make yourself (or them) answer the above question. If the first option gets selected (i.e., you/they don't have strong emotions about the goal), then you'll want to force yourself to develop a stronger emotional connection.
Take one of your 2023 goals and identify at least three reasons to care about that goal. Perhaps the goal will benefit people you care about. Maybe the goal will give you a better work-life balance and more time with your friends and family. Your goal could offer you the thrill of learning new skills or the chance to meet new people. It could be that your goal offers some variety in an otherwise monotonous job.
Some emotional connections are deeper than others, but when you're struggling to find a reason to care about a goal, don't get too concerned about why you care. As long as you've got some kind of emotional connection to your goal, you'll be light years ahead of most people.
Spend a little time talking to other people about their goals, and ask them why they care about achieving those goals. You'll quickly spot the people who are deeply passionate about, and invested in, their goals. You'll also witness those who lack a personal connection to their goal. Instead of saying, "I've always been passionate about achieving...," they're far more likely to say something like, "I don't really care about the goal, but my boss requires I commit to something."
Research has shown that the strength of a personal connection can even affect things like sales and charitable giving. Doctors often provide more comprehensive care to patients they feel an emotional connection to, and people are more likely to donate to charities when they feel connected to the recipients. Having a personal connection can lead to greater effort and motivation.
So, if you're struggling to achieve a goal, consider whether or not you have an emotional connection to it. If you don't, try to find a way to make it meaningful. It could be that achieving the goal will bring you closer to your passions or values or that it will benefit someone you care about. Whatever the reason, having an emotional connection to a goal can make all the difference in achieving it.
