Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Laying out goals

Most of us have those weeks where we feel less effective. This week is one of those weeks for me. I'm sick with some kind of cold/sinus infection and can't hear very well,  my attention span is about a tenth of what it usually is, and all I really want to do is sleep. I'd love to give myself the excuse of "I just don't feel well", but that shouldn't deter me from the bigger picture.

Whenever I feel like I'm veering off of a productive path, I take a moment to reestablish goals and the tactics that will be required to achieve them -- even if it means pushing past my comfort zone.

Today I present you with three major goals of mine:

1) Be awesome at my job. 

In my current role, I am tasked with growing business among existing accounts. In order to do this, I need to understand individual business goals for each client and how our marketing services can help them achieve these goals. Luckily, I work with awesome team members who pay close attention to the impact our program has on our clients' bottom lines. 

From a tactical standpoint, I will list out goals per client and recommended services that will help them succeed. I will also work more closely with our program leads to gain additional insights into how I can add value to each client relationship without making an overt pitch.

2) Figure out what's next. 

My boss popped a big question a few weeks ago -- "What do you see yourself doing next?"

I found it really hard to answer. I love what I do now, but I will always operate under the principle that there is more I can be doing and learning.

When I was in college, I had high hopes of working in a creative field. Now that I have worked in roles not traditionally considered as "creative",  I've found that creativity does indeed play a huge role in forward-moving career paths. I want to use my creativity to improve processes and make strong cases for change, which is ultimately what selling is really about.

Within the next year, I would like to have a clearly defined career path in which I will thrive on my strongest attributes and strengthen my weakest abilities.

3) Continue growing relationships. 

Whether personal or professional, relationships are absolutely critical to self-improvement. I want to foster my existing relationships by sponging up insights of my colleagues and peers. To do this, I need to be a consistent communicator while remaining sensitive to what drives others.