How to set meaningful career goals
If you’re “bad” at setting career goals, this post is for you.
“What are some goals you’d like to accomplish next year?” used to be my LEAST favorite question during my mid-year reviews. I always thought I was bad at setting goals. All I wanted to do was fulfill my job requirements, keep my head down, and go home. Now, I realize that I wasn’t bad at setting goals, I just didn’t like my career enough to want to grow in it. Fast forward to today, I’m in a career that I love, and I look forward to setting goals that challenge me and push me to be ready for the next level.
I’ve learned that setting and achieving goals is important, whether you like your current role or not. Goal setting gives you something to strive for and allows you to grow in preparation for your next move—whether it be up or out.
If you find yourself stumped when it’s time to set goals, here’s a little crash course to get you going.
Set the right amount of goals
Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Three or four goals is a good amount of goals to set if you check in with your manager on a bi-annual cadence. If you only check in annually, I recommend five to seven goals. Setting the right amount of goals sets you up for success to achieve as many goals as possible. If you set too many, you run the risk of being disappointed or feeling like you underperformed if you don’t meet them all.
Go for growth
Find out what you need to be considered for a promotion, and use those tasks as a framework for your goals. Whether it’s taking the lead on a project, managing team members, or getting a certification—let your manager know you want to grow in your career by making these tasks part of your goals.
Learn something new
This goal always goes over well with managers. They love to see that you’re interested in learning a new skill. This is a great goal to set whether you love or hate your current job because you can add something to your toolbelt that will either set you up for a promotion or your next cross-functional move. Do some digging to find out what kinds of formal learning, like courses or certificate programs, your company will sponsor to take your learning to the next level.
Perfect your craft
There’s always room for improvement. I like to challenge myself to set goals that will help me become a better and more well-rounded writer. This may look like taking on projects that are outside of my usual scope of work or adding a creative twist to a project that’s more cut and dry. Set goals that challenge you to step outside of your comfort zone and become better at what you do. It’s easy to get into a rhythm and do the same thing over and over. Shake things up a bit. You’ll appreciate it!
Lean into metrics
If you have a job where you have to meet certain metrics, that makes your goal-setting much easier. Lean into the metrics you already have to meet and build out a strategy to help you meet them. Mapping out a strategy makes meeting your metrics less daunting, and it gives you a clear path to achieving your goal. Hitting your metrics will look great at your next review and those quantified results are a big resume booster.
Hopefully, this crash course has given you the tools you need to set your goals for next year and beyond. Your goals don’t need to be complex or elaborate, they just have to make sense for you and be attainable.
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