Measurability

A very important component to a successful goal and effective strategy is being able to measure one’s progress.

I’m sure we all do it. On long road trips we look at the map. There is Point A and Point B. We understand that the trip is 500 miles and that it will take about 8 hours to drive. Yet we can’t help but frequently review the map to see if we have passed through Palookaville or determine how much longer it is until the next town Wherethehellamiburg.

We want to check our progress. We want to know if we’re on track and on time. It is instinctive.

A trip through the desert, with no milestones or landmarks would be a pretty lonely, frustrating journey. And even in the punishment of solitary confinement, prisoners lose their minds because they have no way of tracking “progress” or otherwise count the days they have left. They don’t know, and it is the void of uncertainty that drives them maaaaaaaad!

Likewise, it is a long, arduous journey between here and your goal. Since your goal is a personal endeavor, you might call it “solitary” since you are pursuing the goal on your own. Without any benchmark to indicate progress, it will be easy to lose sight of the goal. It will be even easier to get distracted and off course. The combination of frustration and uncertainty are the Destructive Duo who will conspire to snuff out your goal, the result of which, in my opinion, is one of life’s great tragedies.

If yours is a Big Thing goal, you likely have never attempted it before, which means that unless you plot a strategy with specificity and measurable benchmarking, you won’t know where you’re going as you traverse through unchartered territory.

Conversely, measurable results can be a source of powerful motivation. Tracking the small accomplishments along the way is the absolute best indication that you are on your way! It means your strategy is right, or that you’re making it right, and that it is all coming together!

Part of measurable success is a result of being specific. You are determined to run 10 miles on Saturday, March 10. If on Sunday, March 11 you can look back 24 hours and confirm that you did indeed run 10 miles on Saturday, then you have succeeded.

In fact, being specific in your goal making is key to measuring your progress. We have already covered the importance of being specific in marathon planning, but really this is critical to all goal making for any of your dreams.

For any of your goals to have meaning and viability, they have to exist on a map. A map in this case is a calendar. Commit your goals to a specific timeline.

Do you want to be a millionaire? How long do you think it will take you? 10 years? Mark a detailed, specific course that leads you to the wealth you want on this very day 10 years from now.

Do you want to be president? When? 20 years from now? Mark a detailed, specific course of political and public service that will lead you to the Oval Office by January 20, twenty years from now.

Think about what you have learned thus far about goals, value, strategy, and specificity. Because goals have to have meaning and personal value, ask yourself, “Why is this important to me?” “Am I committed to getting this done by such-and-such date?” “Will it change my life? Or add to it?” Such introspection will help shape your course and allow you to establish the benchmarks that indicate your progress or your need for improvement.

The best benchmarks of measurable success are what I call small goals, which are essentially the stepping stones to your uber goal.