If you’re in sales or business, or just have a desire to keep track of what your status is in regards to the goals you set for the year, then mid-year is an important time to evaluate your progress. Mid-year is early summer, and when the weather naturally becomes more pleasant, people are inspired to move more outside, which conjures dreams of travel and play. Before getting sucked into vacation mode and relaxing in the sunshine, take some time to determine where you are at with your intended yearly progress. If you have a monetary goal for the year, it’s a great time to check on what’s been accomplished so far so you can tweak your plan to maximize productivity for the rest of your year. Read on for some tips to evaluate your mid-year status to keep your progress moving forward with momentum and achieve your annual goals.
Review and Evaluate Your Progress
It’s important to sit down with all the facts and figures, look at everything carefully, take some notes if necessary, and be completely honest with yourself about how things are going. Once you determine where you are at in relation to your goals, you can determine how much needs to be done to finish the year. If you are very far away from your goals this is also the time to kick yourself into gear to meet those goals. It’s impossible to keep track of goals without writing them down. If your goal is to make $100,000 this year then you need to have that broken down into quarters, months and weeks then determine what needs to be done daily to meet those goals. Now is a good time to clarify your goal if it wasn’t specific enough at the beginning of the year.
Tweak Your Plan
Knowing where you are at makes clarity about your action plan moving forward more possible. Specific action plans are necessary to success. Once you know what the gap is to reach your goal, you can break down that difference into 6 months of projected targets. Here is where you can really benefit from getting the specifics outlined and organized. Clearly delineate what needs to be done; for example, making ten prospecting calls per day, organizing three proposals per week, or whatever other specific tasks need to be completed to make $100,000 this year or whatever your goal is. Stick to that plan every single day, no matter what.
Ask yourself the following questions:
What challenges have stagnated or blocked your other goals?
How can those be shifted or overcome to achieve the goals that still need to be accomplished?
What resources are needed to accomplish them?
Are any goals no longer a priority that should be reassessed or removed from your list?
Which new goals and priorities might need to be added?
Make sure to add any additional resources you will need.
Typically, a manager would help a salesperson clarify their actions moving ahead with a mid-year review, but when we are our own boss, we need to do this for ourselves. Ideally if you have a mentor, accountability partner, or professional coach, they can help you with this review. If you don’t have this type of relationship, you will need to have the discipline to regularly review your goals and objectively evaluate what needs to be done. During a mid-year review, go over what you have done so far, and make sure your goals are SMART.
SMART Goals
SMART Goals are:
Specific – Detailed goals include all aspects of the goals including the who, what, why, when, and where, and how they will be achieved.
Measurable – Goals should have measurable objectives that can be reviewed including targets.
Achievable – Reasonable goals are realistic in that they are challenging but can be achieved within a certain time and with the resources possible.
Relevant – The goals are in line with the overall values and priorities of the individual or business.
Timely – Define clear deadlines for top priorities and create goals that can be achieved within a year.
Celebrate and Reward Success
It’s equally important to acknowledge yourself and your team for the progress you have made so far. Make sure to celebrate your wins by addressing which goals and objectives have been achieved by mid-year, and identify where you are on track to hit the long term goals. It can be helpful to implement a reward system of some sort to maximize the feeling of success, which encourages more success down the road and helps with the energies of manifestation and motivation. Do you or your team like to go out to dinner to celebrate? Get a massage? Take an extra day off for personal reward? Or maybe it’s something as small but thoughtful as a gift card for coffee or wine.
When analyzing and evaluating your mid-year progress, be sure to give yourself plenty of time to review the details and write down what needs to be done. Give yourself a break where you have fallen short, and encourage yourself by celebrating where you have gotten it right. It’s going to take some practice, but if you can set yourself up with a plan that works for you. When you get it right (and remember, it’s a process to tweak this), there will be some fantastic rewards. Review the plan you created for yourself at the start of the year, and consider what’s working, and what’s not working. Why isn’t it working? If you’re missing something, then figure out what it is and add it. This is the time to be very constructive and critical; get it sorted out before the next six months fly by. Paying close attention throughout the year and tweaking your plan as you go will enhance your long term success. Read “The Power of Consistency” by Weldon Long for a boost of encouragement and some good tips. For more thoughts and ideas on goal setting, read Plan Your Best Year for 2022, Focus on Your Strengths and Quarterly Review Goals. Subscribe for more business, sales, and investing posts. Have a lovely day!
