Why Progress Matters

With any goal or project, we must keep our focus on what is important. It isn’t just that final outcome that we need to keep top of mind.

Most people easily do that. But they still slip up and miss their goal. Why? The key isn’t the outcome or the focus on what it will be like when you hit your objective.

I’ve always found that the final goal should be a focus but not the main focus. The final outcome gives us a distant vision and a reason for our efforts. It does a great job providing direction and assuring that we are moving in the right direction.

But it doesn’t give you a good idea of how you are doing. For that, we need to focus more on the progress we are making. We need to gauge our pace, not just our direction. This will tell if you are going to hit the mark at the end.

There are two types of goals. Outcome goals are the ones that we set that describe the finish line. This is the most common goal. We want to achieve something, so we set the goal to reach it.

But there is a second type of goal that is often ignored. It is a process goal. It describes the steps that need to be taken on a regular basis. It is a leading measurement, providing a look at where you are going.

These process goals describe the key steps. They give more insight into how you will reach that outcome goal. Without process goals, you end up just hoping that what you do will take you where you want to go.

Being deliberate and setting process goals, helps us to lay out the path. We can stop at any point and take measure. Are we doing what we need to do to be successful? Are we taking the steps? Did we underestimate the challenges that would arise?

Process goals help to evaluate the progress. They help identify the things we need to do and the marks we should hit along the way. We can see if we are getting closer or just procrastinating.

With the shift towards process and making progress, you become armed with the key to success. The key to success is to have a strategic plan and then do the necessary work. One without the other leads to failure and frustration.

You can be confident in your approach because you can measure it and see that you are on track. You can be flexible because you aren’t locked into some rigid plan but instead you are tracking on a regular basis and can tweak those measurements if appropriate.

Despite this simple approach, most will still shun it to place their focus on an outcome goal. Then all that remains is willpower and effort. Yet both of those often disappoint us. They seem so powerful until we need them, then they disappear.

The systems and habits approach to improvement is a different way to live our lives. It replaces frustration with contentment. It replaces wishing with action steps. We do what we should do because it is natural, not because we force it on us.

Learning how to make progress and focus on the progress towards a goal will help you achieve more. It will take away much of the guessing and hoping and replace it with concrete steps towards the future you desire.

Check out You Can’t Surf from the Shore for more insight into using the Systems and Habits Approach to Improvement to succeed!