Peter Bregman for The Harvard Business Review: Consider Not Setting Goals in 2013
Questioning the wisdom of setting stretch goals is like questioning the very foundation of business. We might debate which goals to set, or how to set them, but who would debate whether to set goals at all?
Dec 14, 2012
Harvard Business Review
By Peter Bregman
December 14, 2012
"Sophia, Daniel," I yelled across the apartment at my seven-year-old and five-year-old who were playing together in their bedroom. "The school bus arrives in 10 minutes. Let's see who can brush their teeth and get to the door first."
They dashed towards the bathroom, giggling. Two minutes later, Daniel had won with Sophia a close second. I smiled at my own victory. I had achieved my goal of getting them to the door with their teeth brushed in record time.
Or did I?
Yes, they were at the door in time. But two minutes from start to finish meant that they didn't brush their teeth very well, they definitely didn't floss, and the bathroom was a mess.
We all know how important it is to have goals, right? And not just any goals, but stretch goals. Big Hairy Audacious Goals (or BHAGs, as they're known to the inner goal-setting crowd).
It makes sense: if you don't know specifically where you're going, then you'll never get there. And if you don't set the bar high enough, you'll never live up to your potential.
This is accepted common sense in the business world and it's reinforced by research. Like that study done on the Harvard Business School class you may have heard of, in which only 3% of the graduating students wrote down clear goals. Twenty years later, those 3% were worth 10 times the worth of the rest of the class combined. Compelling, right?
It would be if it were true. But it isn't. That study doesn't exist. It's pure urban myth.
Still, that's just one specious story. Questioning the wisdom of setting stretch goals is like questioning the very foundation of business. We might debate which goals to set, or how to set them, but who would debate whether to set goals at all?
I'd like to.
It's not that goals, by their nature, are bad. It's just that they come with a number of side effects that suggest you may be better off without them.
The authors of a Harvard Business School working paper, Goals Gone Wild, reviewed a number of research studies related to goals and concluded that the upside of goal setting has been exaggerated and the downside, the "systematic harm caused by goal setting," has been disregarded.
They identified clear side effects associated with goal setting, including "a narrow focus that neglects non-goal areas, a rise in unethical behavior, distorted risk preferences, corrosion of organizational culture, and reduced intrinsic motivation."
Read More
Dec 14, 2012
Harvard Business Review
By Peter Bregman
December 14, 2012
"Sophia, Daniel," I yelled across the apartment at my seven-year-old and five-year-old who were playing together in their bedroom. "The school bus arrives in 10 minutes. Let's see who can brush their teeth and get to the door first."
They dashed towards the bathroom, giggling. Two minutes later, Daniel had won with Sophia a close second. I smiled at my own victory. I had achieved my goal of getting them to the door with their teeth brushed in record time.
Or did I?
Yes, they were at the door in time. But two minutes from start to finish meant that they didn't brush their teeth very well, they definitely didn't floss, and the bathroom was a mess.
We all know how important it is to have goals, right? And not just any goals, but stretch goals. Big Hairy Audacious Goals (or BHAGs, as they're known to the inner goal-setting crowd).
It makes sense: if you don't know specifically where you're going, then you'll never get there. And if you don't set the bar high enough, you'll never live up to your potential.
This is accepted common sense in the business world and it's reinforced by research. Like that study done on the Harvard Business School class you may have heard of, in which only 3% of the graduating students wrote down clear goals. Twenty years later, those 3% were worth 10 times the worth of the rest of the class combined. Compelling, right?
It would be if it were true. But it isn't. That study doesn't exist. It's pure urban myth.
Still, that's just one specious story. Questioning the wisdom of setting stretch goals is like questioning the very foundation of business. We might debate which goals to set, or how to set them, but who would debate whether to set goals at all?
I'd like to.
It's not that goals, by their nature, are bad. It's just that they come with a number of side effects that suggest you may be better off without them.
The authors of a Harvard Business School working paper, Goals Gone Wild, reviewed a number of research studies related to goals and concluded that the upside of goal setting has been exaggerated and the downside, the "systematic harm caused by goal setting," has been disregarded.
They identified clear side effects associated with goal setting, including "a narrow focus that neglects non-goal areas, a rise in unethical behavior, distorted risk preferences, corrosion of organizational culture, and reduced intrinsic motivation."
Read More