Mark Bryan & Company
Success Anticipation
Dear Reader,
What if you could dramatically improve your ability to reach your goals (without winning the lottery)?
Sure, everyone knows the basics of goal setting - make it specific, measureable, realistic. Set a time limit so you don't put it off forever. Make it public to increase your motivation to complete it.
But what if you are the kind of person who sets goals but often fails to complete them? What then? (Just think back to your last New Year's list.)
For those of us skilled at missing our goals, here is an excellent tool. (It comes from the Leadership Process: Motivating Achievement workshop by Dr. Brad Spencer, founder of Spencer, Shenk, Capers and Associates. SSCA is my strategic consulting partner here in Los Angeles.)
The tool is called SA/FA (success anticipation/failure anticipation). Pick one of your goals. What is the percentage chance that you will complete that goal? 50/50? 90/10? (Success percentage on the left, failure on the right).
For instance, if my goal was to publish a new book, I might set it up by saying, My goal is "To write 2000 words a week on a new book and have it completed by Christmas, 2008." I can ask my friend Jeff to check in with me weekly to monitor and support my progress.
My SA/FA for writing a new book by 2008 is 70/30. This means I think/feel I have a 70% chance of publishing a new book by December 31, 2008. My SA -- success anticipation -- is 70%. Not bad. We try to choose our percentages wisely. I chose 70% because:
1. I have proven expertise. (I have written and published 5 books.)
2. I have a network of support. (I know many professional writers, agents, editors, and publishers.)
3. I am motivated. (I need the money. Most writers need money!)
4. I am competitive. (I get frustrated when other people publish and I don't).
5. I have people to encourage me/push me. (My wife, editors, agents, etc. want me to write something!)
Now, consider your goal. What are the factors that you feel contribute to your chances of success? List them.
Now, the other side of the equation: If I have a 30% chance of failure - 3 in 10 chance that I will not make my goal of publishing a new book by December 31, 2008, what are the factors that might work against my success? What makes up that 30% FA?
In my case, it is this:
1. I know how darned hard it is to write a book. (Each of my published books was widely rejected before it found a publisher.)
2. I know that writing a good book is no guarantee of publication. (Julia Cameron and I had to self-publish the original "Artist's Way.")
3. I know my weaknesses. (I procrastinate, research forever, get too busy consulting and coaching other people on their projects, travel a lot.)
4. I have family commitments. (2 grandchildren, a wife, three dogs, bills to pay, etc.) Family could appear on either list depending on whether they motivate or distract us.
Okay, now list the factors that make up your FA toward your goal? What is working against you?
SA/FA cannot exist without each other. A SA of 100% is not only rare but boring. A goal should be just outside our reach.
Okay final part of the tool: Two Questions:
a. What can you do to strengthen the factors on the success anticipation list?
b. What can you do to weaken or remove the blocks on the FA list?
We loosely call this a force field analysis.
Okay, one more hint: How will it feel to fail to meet your goal? How would it feel to complete it successfully? Hold on to whichever feeling motivates you more. Try to focus on the feelings of success and do one small thing toward the goal today. warmest regards, Mark
If you are interested in measurements of your leadership strengths, organizational climate, personality type, or a way to predict your individual failure patterns under stress (so you can avoid sabotaging yourself) contact me about our proprietary on-line testing. mark@markbryan.com
"The most unfortunate procrastination of all is to put off being happy."
Artists Way At Work page 85.
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