A habit to grow everyday
If you want to know where you’re going, then you must know where you are and where you’ve been. But the pace and chaos of life distract us and divert our attention away from this critical understanding. Regular reviews refocus our attention on what’s important. They help us grow as leaders.
Reviews make things visible. If I don’t pause and review the day, the week, the month, or the year, I will likely miss critical observations. Without this reflection and observation, I can’t evaluate and course correct.
Holding healthy reviews takes a middle road between two ditches I want to avoid.
If you want to know where you’re going, then you must know where you are and where you’ve been.
Judgment will not help me grow. Instead, I will likely quit or hide the areas I am struggling in. Hiding is the opposite of making something visible.
So, where is the middle road between these two? Reviews should focus on two key outcomes:
It’s common to focus on what’s not working rather than what is going well. Healthy reviews can help to build a habit of celebration around the areas where you’re making progress. This celebration energizes you to continue and take the next step.
Selecting the right questions is critical to cultivating a habit of celebration through your reviews. The most straightforward questions might be something like:
Sometimes the answer to “How did I live out my values this week?” is “I didn’t.” If that’s the case, then I need to be honest with myself. When I'm open and bring both my success and failure visibly out into the light, I can deal with them honestly and grow.
First, you need to give yourself some grace in the area of failure and recognize you’re not always going to get it right. Next, you need to ask the question, “Why?” Why did you not live out your values? Was there an external cause? Were you reverting to old habits? This insight is critical to identifying what to do next.
Regular reviews refocus our attention on what’s important
You will benefit from holding reviews at multiple intervals. A daily review should be lightweight, helping you slow down enough to make what happened in the day visible. At the end of the week, you’ll want to dig a little deeper to into what happened and why.
A monthly or annual review is different because you’re no longer drawing on short-term memory. You might even need to go back and look at notes from your more frequent reviews. You’re looking for more significant trends over time. Long-term reviews also help you evaluate growth since the previous season of leadership. It’s like marking a child’s height on the wall. Day to day, they don’t seem to grow, but there is a measurable difference after a few months.
Holding reviews at multiple intervals helps you see the whole picture. It provides the space needed to celebrate and the awareness needed to grow.
Asking the right questions is critical to doing good reviews. Your question should come from your priorities.
A value I’ve been reviewing is, “Did I say ‘yes’ when my kids asked to do something together?” When they ask to draw, swing, play legos, or shoot hoops, I want to say yes. I’ve had some hectic seasons over the past few years, and I identified that I had developed a habit of saying, “give me a minute,” even when I didn’t need a minute. It was just a reflex, a habit I needed to break.
As you craft questions for your review, consider these questions (meta, I know)
Understanding these will help you shape questions personalized to the areas you want to grow in.
Some questions fit better into different time frames. You need to ask yourself, “Can I make an observable difference in a day? A week?” If your goal is to read more, then a daily question of, “How many books did I read?” will likely not be helpful. A better daily review question would be, “How did I make time today to read?”
You want your life to have meaning and impact.
What if your everyday work and life not only felt natural and intuitive but also aligned with your priorities and positively impacted those around you?
I know it can feel overwhelming to get started with regular reviews. Here are a few questions to get you started and begin building the habit.
It will take some discipline to build the habit, but once established; it can feel frictionless. I recommend setting a time in your calendar for your reviews. Place your questions in the event description and set them to repeat at the proper interval.
I recently changed my review from the beginning of the day to the end of the day. I found it helped me better wrap up my day and prepare for the next. When I do my daily review, I type my answers into the description of that day’s event so I can quickly go back and find it if needed.
Ultimately, using personal reviews is an essential step to improving your leadership capabilities.
It helps you become a better listener, more organized and mindful of your decisions. The practice of having personal reviews can be applied to any situation and encourages self awareness, allowing you to stay on track with your goals.
If you take the time to reflect on the insight from a review session, it can help boost self confidence and sharpen leadership skills as you build upon them.
Start implementing personal reviews into your daily life and see the improvements in yourself over time; it’s a simple process that reaps large rewards.
Today is the day to start using reviews, it can be a simple daily review and then a weekly one. You can download the personal review worksheet to get you started.
Take the first stride in honing your leadership capability and watch yourself grow today.
Team leadership is a management approach focused on leading and guiding a group of individuals working together towards a common goal. A team leader is responsible for providing direction, support, and guidance to the team members, while fostering a positive and productive work environment.
Team leadership involves setting clear goals and expectations for the team, communicating effectively, and building trust and relationships with team members. It also involves empowering team members to take ownership of their work and contribute their unique skills and perspectives to the team's success.
Some key characteristics of effective team leadership include:
Overall, team leadership is a collaborative and empowering approach to management that values communication, trust-building, and results-driven performance.
There are several different styles of team leadership, including:
Overall, each style of team leadership has its own strengths and weaknesses, and effective leaders may use a combination of different styles depending on the situation and the needs of their team.
There are several key skills required for effective team leadership, including:
Overall, effective team leadership requires a combination of interpersonal, decision-making, and management skills, as well as the ability to inspire and empower team members to work collaboratively towards shared goals.
Servant leadership is a leadership philosophy and management style that emphasizes the importance of serving others first before considering one's own needs and desires. It's an approach to leadership that focuses on the well-being and growth of others, rather than solely on achieving organizational goals.
A servant leader prioritizes the needs of their followers or team members, providing them with support, guidance, and mentorship. They are committed to empowering their team members to reach their full potential and achieve their goals.
Some common characteristics of servant leaders include:
Overall, servant leadership is about creating a supportive and empowering environment for others to thrive. By prioritizing the needs of their followers, a servant leader can inspire trust, loyalty, and commitment, ultimately leading to better outcomes for the organization as a whole.
Learn more about how to cultivate servant leadership.
Servant leadership is a leadership philosophy and management style that emphasizes the importance of serving others first before considering one's own needs and desires. It's an approach to leadership that focuses on the well-being and growth of others, rather than solely on achieving organizational goals.
A servant leader prioritizes the needs of their followers or team members, providing them with support, guidance, and mentorship. They are committed to empowering their team members to reach their full potential and achieve their goals.
Some common characteristics of servant leaders include:
Overall, servant leadership is about creating a supportive and empowering environment for others to thrive. By prioritizing the needs of their followers, a servant leader can inspire trust, loyalty, and commitment, ultimately leading to better outcomes for the organization as a whole.
Learn more about how to cultivate servant leadership.
Servant leadership can be beneficial in the workplace in a number of ways, including:
Overall, servant leadership can lead to a more positive, productive, and fulfilling workplace environment, benefiting both employees and the organization as a whole.
Learn more about how to cultivate servant leadership.
Servant leadership differs from many other leadership styles in several key ways:
Overall, servant leadership is characterized by a focus on serving others, prioritizing empathy and collaboration, and taking a humble and accountable approach to leadership. While other leadership styles may be effective in different contexts, servant leadership can be a powerful tool for creating positive change and empowering others to reach their full potential.
Learn more about how to cultivate servant leadership.
Goal setting is the process of identifying specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound objectives that you want to achieve. It involves determining what you want to accomplish, defining clear objectives, and developing a plan for achieving those objectives.
By setting goals, you can clarify your priorities, focus your efforts, measure progress, and ultimately achieve success.
Goal setting is an important skill that can help you in both your personal and professional life, enabling you to make progress towards your desired outcomes and improve your overall performance.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
Goal setting is important for several reasons:
In summary, goal setting is important because it provides direction and focus, increases motivation, enhances productivity and performance, provides a sense of purpose and meaning, enables personal growth and development, and increases confidence and self-esteem.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
There are many benefits of setting goals, including:
Overall, setting goals is an important tool for personal and professional growth, enabling you to achieve success and realize your full potential.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
Absolutely, goal setting can indeed help you find direction in your life. Goals act like a compass, guiding you towards the things you want to achieve and helping you determine the path to get there. Here's how goal setting can provide direction:
So, if you're feeling lost or unsure about the direction of your life, setting some goals might be a good place to start. Remember to make your goals SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) to increase your chances of success.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
Setting goals is an important process, but there are several common mistakes that people often make. Here are some of the most common mistakes:
By avoiding these common mistakes and setting clear, realistic, and aligned goals, you can increase your chances of achieving your desired outcomes.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
Goal setting is a powerful tool that can lead to success in both your personal and professional life. Setting and achieving goals has been a significant part of my personal and professional life.
When done right, goal setting can act as your personal GPS, guiding you toward success in both life and work. With clear objectives, you can navigate your path and make consistent, intentional decisions that lead toward the life you want to live.
Here's why goal setting is a game-changer:
But for this to happen, your goals must be clear, actionable and your own.
Below, I’ll give a more in-depth look at five benefits, three pitfalls, and an opportunity I believe will help you not only set but also achieve your goal.
Let’s get started. Here's how setting goals can be your ultimate success tool:
Aligning your goals with your values and passions is crucial to ensure long-term motivation and satisfaction. Here are some steps to help you do this:
Remember, when your goals align with your values and passions, you're more likely to feel fulfilled and satisfied when you reach them. It also makes the journey towards achieving your goals more enjoyable and rewarding.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
Absolutely, goal setting can indeed help you find direction in your life. Goals act like a compass, guiding you towards the things you want to achieve and helping you determine the path to get there. Here's how goal setting can provide direction:
So, if you're feeling lost or unsure about the direction of your life, setting some goals might be a good place to start. Remember to make your goals SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) to increase your chances of success.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
Prioritizing goals can be a challenging task, but it's crucial to ensure you're working on what matters most. Here are some steps to help you prioritize your goals:
By following these steps, you can create a clear roadmap for achieving your goals based on their importance, urgency, resource requirements, and alignment with your overall life objectives.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
Overcoming obstacles is an important part of achieving your goals. Here are some strategies you can use to overcome obstacles and stay on track:
By using these strategies, you can overcome obstacles that may prevent you from achieving your goals and stay on track towards your desired outcomes.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
Prioritizing goals can be a challenging task, but it's crucial to ensure you're working on what matters most. Here are some steps to help you prioritize your goals:
By following these steps, you can create a clear roadmap for achieving your goals based on their importance, urgency, resource requirements, and alignment with your overall life objectives.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
The frequency with which you should review your goals can depend on the nature of the goals themselves. However, a common recommendation is to review them regularly to ensure you're making progress and staying on track. Here are some general guidelines:
Remember, these are just guidelines. The key is to find a review frequency that works best for you and your specific goals. Regular review ensures you stay accountable, track your progress, and make necessary adjustments to your plans.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
The number of goals you should have at one time can vary greatly depending on your individual capacity, resources, and circumstances. However, a common recommendation is to focus on a few key goals at a time to avoid feeling overwhelmed and ensure that you can devote sufficient time and energy to each goal.
The truth is, fewer goals mean more focus. AND more achieving.
So, how many goals should you aim for?
It depends on your timeline.
If we’re talking about annual goals, then maybe 8-10 or just enough to cover different areas of your life—like your health, career, and relationships—without leaving you overwhelmed.
8-10 Annual goals will break down to about 2-3 goals a quarter, which allows you to focus your attention and energy long enough to make a significant impact.
Now, if we’re talking about daily goals, we teach in our Goal Focus Coaching Program to have no more than 3 priority actions a day. That may not seem like a lot, but when you stack it day after day, it has over 1,000 priority actions for the year. That impact is huge.
Having a limited number of goals allows you to focus and make meaningful progress. If you spread yourself too thin across many goals, you may find it difficult to make significant progress in any area.
Remember, it's not about the quantity of goals, but the quality of your focus and effort towards achieving them. It's better to fully commit to a few important goals than to juggle many goals without making substantial progress.
Keep in mind that everyone's capacity for goal-setting is different, and what works best for you might be different from what works for someone else. It's crucial to find a balance that feels manageable and aligns with your personal aspirations and lifestyle.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
Goal setting is just the start. Goal achieving is what we all really want, and keeping track is where the magic happens.
At Everyday Design, we want to help you build momentum toward your goals. When you begin stacking daily wins, something magical happens—you feel progress. This momentum fuels your focus and commitment, even through setbacks and detours.
If you want to measure progress toward your goals, follow these steps.
Below I break down each step into more detail to help you stay on the path to success!
Celebrating your achievements is an important part of the goal-setting process. It helps to reinforce positive behavior, keeps you motivated, and gives you a sense of accomplishment. Here are some ways to celebrate achieving your goals.
Remember, the celebration should be proportionate to the size and significance of the achievement. Small victories deserve recognition too, but they might not warrant the same level of celebration as larger, more significant achievements. The key is to find a way to celebrate that feels rewarding and meaningful to you.
Learn more about how to effectively set goals.
Are you striving to align your goals with your values and passions?
Wondering how to measure progress or break down large goals into manageable steps?
Are you ready to transform your dreams into reality?
Our Goal Focus Guide + Worksheet is designed for you to discover how effective goal setting can transform your personal and professional life.
Download the Goal Focus Worksheet