How to set goals with people who don’t want to set goals

Setting goals does not come easy to everyone.

Not everyone is thinking about the future, not everyone wants to learn something new. People think goals are pointless and performative, and to be fair to them, they absolutely can be. 

So, how do you set goals with someone who doesn’t really want to? 

Well, the truth is, *most* people do have a sense of the direction they want to go in, deep down, somewhere. You as a manager just have to help them find it and drag it out them. 

It’s also important to acknowledge that goals are not for everyone: they can create undue stress and distraction, so what do you do with those types of people? 

There are tons of ways to set goals, there are countless blog posts and YouTube videos about it. Over the 4 years I’ve been managing, I’ve learnt a lot about how to help people find goals they are excited about. I’ve refined my own process, which focuses on the individual, aligns with the company and encourages true growth. 

During my talk I’m going to share my tried and tested method of setting goals, I will do a step by step walk through of my process, including: 

• Pulling ideas out of your reports
• Creating tangible, realistic goals that your reports are excited about and engaged in – How not to repeat the goal setting process every cycle (making it fast and agile) 
• How to set direction when goals aren’t a good fit – Align with broader team or company objectives