Successful business people and achievers in all fields set goals. Setting goals gives us long-term vision and short-term motivation. The short-term goals we set for ourselves allow us to stay on track toward achieving our long-term dreams and visions.
For many people, setting short-term goals define their path and give them purpose. With goals, they become more driven and motivated because they know specifically what they’re working toward.
As the 2017 work year came to a close, I met with my supervisor, managing editor Walt Cooley, for my year-end review. In our conversation, we determined I have several long-term life goals. However, my short-term work goals were non-existent. To remedy this, Walt challenged me to come up with three specific work goals for myself by the time I returned from visiting my family over Christmas.
I have found that when I don’t set goals for myself, I feel content with my work and tend to view it as “good enough.” In reality, however, it is not my best work. Stagnant work always has the ability to grow and progress forward.
Since starting my job at Progressive Dairyman, the goal at hand was to learn the duties of an editor and schedule articles for my own beats. Now that I am fairly comfortable with my responsibilities, I want to push my boundaries and challenge myself to become even more efficient and productive as an editor.
It is our goal as editors to help dairy producers make the most out of their farms and operations. We strive to provide articles that help solve problems, understand new technologies, explain how something works or highlight opportunities for improved profitability and efficiency. It is our objective to deliver our readers information that is both useful and relevant.
So as I sat down to write this editorial for you, I first wrote down three short-term work goals for myself. Here are a few tips I keep in mind every time I set new goals for myself.
- Write your goals down: If you never write down your goals, they will never be more than wishful thinking. By writing them down, they become more tangible.
- Set precise goals: Putting in dates, times and measurements allow you to track your goals. Being precise allows you to know exactly when you have achieved the goal and see clear, visible accomplishment.
- Set realistic goals: It is important to set goals you can attain and achieve. It is all too possible to set the bar too high and have goals too difficult to reach because we don’t understand exactly how much effort they require.
As you start the new year, take time to reflect upon the vision you have for your farm operation. Are there short-term goals you would like to accomplish within the next year?
Maybe it’s increasing your pregnancy or conception rates, building or repairing a building structure, or even lowering your average bulk tank somatic cell count. Take time this month to write down your goals, and make them both precise and realistic. 
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Audrey Schmitz
- Editor
- Progressive Dairyman
- Email Audrey Schmitz
