{"id":47246,"date":"2026-01-10T00:25:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-10T00:25:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/isafespend.com\/?p=47246"},"modified":"2026-01-10T00:25:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T00:25:13","slug":"what-40-years-of-leadership-taught-me-about-setting-goals-that-deliver-results","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/isafespend.com\/?p=47246","title":{"rendered":"What 40 Years of Leadership Taught Me About Setting Goals That Deliver Results"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n\t\t Entrepreneur \t<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"tw:border-b tw:border-slate-200 tw:pb-4\">\n<h2 class=\"tw:mt-0 tw:mb-1 tw:text-2xl tw:font-heading\">Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"tw:font-normal tw:font-serif tw:text-base tw:marker:text-slate-400\">\n<li>Why many leaders struggle with goal setting in uncertain times and what that hesitation reveals about how companies actually operate.<\/li>\n<li>A proven leadership mindset for building focus, alignment and momentum as businesses plan for the year ahead.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>I believe setting goals should be as automatic in the new year as turning the page on a calendar, yet I\u2019m always surprised by how many CEOs don\u2019t do it at all. Goals are the roadmap for a company\u2019s journey, and without one, it\u2019s hard to understand how leaders expect to arrive anywhere meaningful.<\/p>\n<p>In my experience, leaders who avoid goal setting usually fall into one of two camps: they don\u2019t have a clear process, or they feel paralyzed by economic uncertainty. But difficult conditions make direction more important, not less. When the seas are rough, you don\u2019t abandon the map \u2014 you rely on it.<\/p>\n<p><b>Related: 3 Startup Success Secrets Learned on a 40-Year Journey From Go-For to Billionaire<\/b><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Goal setting 101<\/h2>\n<p>Goal setting isn\u2019t static. Even with a strategy in place, business today requires constant adjustment. What some call herding cats, I simply call a normal Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>Our approach is straightforward: we maintain a one-year plan and a three-year plan, both revisited midway through the year to assess what\u2019s working and what needs recalibration. Each plan includes no more than three primary goals. Fewer than three lacks focus; more than three turns strategy into a cluttered to-do list.<\/p>\n<p>Those goals must be challenging, specific and measurable. \u201cDouble our revenue\u201d is a goal. \u201cIncrease revenue\u201d is not. We aim for what we call BHAGs \u2014 Big, Hairy, Audacious Goals \u2014 because they force the organization to stretch. If a brand grows from five locations to 50 instead of 100, that\u2019s still meaningful progress. Playing it safe may allow you to claim success, but it rarely leads to real growth.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Involve the entire organization<\/h2>\n<p>Even after four decades in business, we continue to involve everyone in the goal-setting process. We survey teams across our franchise brands, gather ideas and vote on the most critical priorities. Inspiration can come from anywhere, and engagement creates ownership.<\/p>\n<p>Each brand also defines success differently. A mature signage brand may focus on increasing average unit volume or expanding the number of million-dollar locations. A newer franchise may prioritize entirely different benchmarks. The key is alignment around goals that actually reflect where the business is today.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Measure what moves the goal<\/h2>\n<p>Setting goals isn\u2019t enough \u2014 you must decide how you\u2019ll measure progress. I call these lead measures: the specific actions that drive results. Every goal should have two or three lead measures attached to it.<\/p>\n<p>If your goal is to double revenue, what daily or weekly sales activity will get you there? If you want to launch a new product every quarter, what milestones and deadlines must be met along the way? Big outcomes are built from consistent, repeatable actions.<\/p>\n<p><b>Related: I Started My Business In My Mom\u2019s Basement at the Age of 17. Here are 5 Rules I Wish I Had Known, But Had to Learn the Hard Way<\/b><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">New year, real progress<\/h2>\n<p>This is how businesses win \u2014 not by fixating on an end-of-year number, but by executing the right actions every day. Just as a basketball team wins one basket at a time, companies grow one call, one meeting and one decision at a time.<\/p>\n<p>After 40 years, I\u2019ve never been more optimistic. Clear, actionable goals have positioned us to finish 2025 strong and set the foundation for an even better 2026. That confidence doesn\u2019t come from hope \u2014 it comes from discipline, clarity and a roadmap that shows exactly where we\u2019re headed.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"tw:border-b tw:border-slate-200 tw:pb-4\">\n<h2 class=\"tw:mt-0 tw:mb-1 tw:text-2xl tw:font-heading\">Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"tw:font-normal tw:font-serif tw:text-base tw:marker:text-slate-400\">\n<li>Why many leaders struggle with goal setting in uncertain times and what that hesitation reveals about how companies actually operate.<\/li>\n<li>A proven leadership mindset for building focus, alignment and momentum as businesses plan for the year ahead.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>I believe setting goals should be as automatic in the new year as turning the page on a calendar, yet I\u2019m always surprised by how many CEOs don\u2019t do it at all. Goals are the roadmap for a company\u2019s journey, and without one, it\u2019s hard to understand how leaders expect to arrive anywhere meaningful.<\/p>\n<p>In my experience, leaders who avoid goal setting usually fall into one of two camps: they don\u2019t have a clear process, or they feel paralyzed by economic uncertainty. But difficult conditions make direction more important, not less. When the seas are rough, you don\u2019t abandon the map \u2014 you rely on it.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Read the full article <a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/growing-a-business\/what-40-years-of-leadership-taught-me-about-setting-goals\/500749\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" rel=\"nofollow\">here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Entrepreneur Key Takeaways Why many leaders struggle with goal setting in uncertain times and what that hesitation reveals about how companies actually operate. A proven leadership mindset for building focus, alignment and momentum as businesses plan for the year ahead. I believe setting goals should be as automatic in the new year as turning the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":47247,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[32],"class_list":{"0":"post-47246","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-make-money","8":"tag-featured"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.12 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>What 40 Years of Leadership Taught Me About Setting Goals That Deliver Results | iSafeSpend<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Entrepreneur Key Takeaways Why many leaders struggle with goal setting in uncertain times and what that hesitation reveals about how companies actually\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, 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