Goals are kind of a big deal at DragonSearch. Not only are they deeply ingrained in our company’s marketing campaigns for clients, but they also play a huge role in our company direction. In fact, the decision to create my internal marketing role grew out of strategic goals set long before I arrived. Actually, internal marketing is just that: a role reserved for working towards these strategic goals. At first goals seemed obvious to me. Everyone knows what the goals are so why don’t we get on with it and start achieving, right?

In my first few weeks in this new role I began to take the reigns of various projects, some already in motion and some as fresh as untouched snow on a powder-day. With these new projects came various kick-off meetings. We would sit down and discuss what we wanted to do. Having read Ric Dragon’s book, and knowing that by taking on these projects I am endeavoring to bring about the change that Ric wants to see in our company, I always knew that goals would be part of the conversation. I also knew that vision, objectives, and metrics would join as part of the larger process of identifying desired outcomes.

Then something interesting happened. I had the opportunity to reconvene a group of fellow team members as part of a second meeting. I had an agenda; I knew what we needed to get out of the meeting. I was ready and I went right into it, like race horse setting out as soon as the gate opens. “Whoa whoa whoa!” I heard. It was time to revisit our goals. But…we had already met once to discuss goals, why waste more time to review? And then it became clear. Every word that followed and every minute we spent in that room had to bring us closer to those golas. It wasn’t a waste of time at all. It would quickly become deeply ingrained in me - like a warrior becomes one with their sword or shield.

Setting goals may seem obvious, especially considering that goals are often things like “make a better widget A”, “improve our customer’s lives” or even “increase revenue”. Not only is it critical that we set these, but we also become stronger when we revisit them as they must shape every step we take. When we stumble, revisiting our goals can revive our creativity and conviction. When we have great momentum, revisiting our goals will ensure we’re heading in the right direction. Armed with your goals you’ll be equipped to combat scope creep and to zero in on good ideas. It’s a lesson I’ve quickly internalized and one that I can confidently apply to every situation. It seems simple, but take a step back and it can make a huge difference.