How to Use Frameworks for Goal Achievement

Why big goals fail—and the simple framework to fix that. Big goals are exciting… but they can also feel overwhelming. Most people know where they are (the start) and where they want to go (the end). But the middle? That messy, unclear gap? It stops them in their tracks. 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝘀𝗵𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲. By breaking your goals into clear, actionable steps, you eliminate overwhelm, create focus, and build unstoppable momentum. Let me show you how. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝗵𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲 ➡ Ideal Goal: What’s your ultimate vision of success? Your North Star—the purpose driving everything you do. ➡ 5-Year Goal: What needs to happen in 5 years to move closer to your Ideal Goal? Turns the dream into something tangible. ➡ 3-Year Goal: What must you accomplish in 3 years to stay on track? Shortens the horizon to create focus. ➡ Yearly Goal: What can you realistically accomplish in the next 12 months? Anchors your vision in actionable, near-term steps. ➡ 90-Day Goal: What’s the one thing that must happen in the next 90 days? Quarterly sprints reduce overwhelm and keep you moving. ➡ Monthly Goal: What’s the one thing you can achieve this month? Break it down into bite-sized milestones. ➡ Weekly Rolling Goal: What’s the most important thing this week? Short-term wins create momentum and clarity. ➡ Daily Clear Goal: What’s the one thing you need to do today? Action starts now—progress is immediate. The Most Common Goal-Setting Problems 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗺: Big goals feel impossible to act on. 𝗡𝗼 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗵: Without a plan, procrastination creeps in. 𝗟𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Without small wins, it’s easy to give up. 𝗧𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀: Spreading focus too thin leads to burnout. This framework solves all of these problems. It simplifies complexity, keeps you focused on what matters most, and gives you the confidence of consistent progress. Why This Works 1/ Clarity eliminates overwhelm. You always know the next step. 2/ Momentum builds motivation. Small wins compound into big results. 3/ Focus drives results. Working on one thing at a time keeps you productive and effective. Your Turn: What’s your daily clear goal for today? Let’s make it real. Drop it in the comments below! Big goals aren’t achieved in a single leap—they’re conquered step by step. Shrink the middle, stay focused, and watch your vision become a reality.

We tell our sales reps to be gritty, to work smarter, not harder, to smash their quota but don't always do the best job pairing those inspirational calls to action with tools and techniques that allow them to do the things we ask. For years, I’ve loved the GROW Goal Setting Model. It is a great model, but I found myself tweaking it to reflect the things I think are fascinating and that actually work for revenue teams. 🧠 Ideas like: - Neuroplasticity - Harms of moonshot thinking - Value of gratitude and meditation - The frustration reps feel when they work tirelessly and still miss quota. That’s why I developed the PATH. 👉 Steal this framework to help your team not only set goals but achieve them. The PATH framework is a four-step process that helps you and your team set actionable goals, anticipate challenges, and ensure every step aligns with your aspirations. 1. Plan: Setting a Focused Goal Everything starts with a solid foundation. The first step is setting a focused goal. SMART goals—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound—work well here. This ensures you’re working toward a well-defined target, making it easier to stay focused and track progress. 2. Anticipate: Backcasting Once your goal is in place, it’s time to imagine your desired future state. I love writing goals as if they've already happened and writing out the details of what it took me to get there. This process ensures that you have realistic micro-actions that you can be accountable to on the PATH to achieving your goal. 3. Test: Pre-Mortem Next, you stress-test your plan with a pre-mortem (inspo credit: Annie Duke, Thinking in Bets) This exercise allows you to identify risks before they arise, so you can adjust your plan and stay on track. It also encourages you to uncover opportunities to leapfrog your progress by brainstorming creative solutions. 4. Harmonize: Alignment to Aspirations The final step ensures that your micro-actions align with your larger aspirations. It's a final sense check to ensure you've set a goal you care enough about that you'll put in the hard work required to achieve it. That work will be supported by a clear PATH to success. The PATH framework ensures you don’t just set goals—you achieve them. 💸 Want me to guide your sales or leadership team through this process as part of your year-end planning or SKO? Drop "PATH" in the comments to learn more.

Ever been handed a vague project like "We need better personas" and a crazy deadline? A simple framework can turn that chaos into clear action: The key? Start with the END GOAL in mind and work backwards. This is because only when you’re clear on the outcome can you create a process that’s realistic, effective, and aligned with business goals. Let’s break it down with the example: "We need better personas." 🎯 Step 1: Define the end goal Ask: Why do we need better personas? What’s the real business metric we’re trying to move? Example: Increase win rates by 9% over the next 6 months. In this case, it’s clear the project isn’t just about creating personas, it’s about using those personas to sharpen messaging and drive more sales. 🎯 Step 2: Align stakeholders & set milestones Before jumping into deliverables, align with key stakeholders. Ensure everyone agrees on the goals, timelines, and success metrics. Kickoff meeting: Confirm the end goal, scope, and key deliverables. Milestone check-ins: Schedule  updates to ensure alignment and course-correct if needed. 🎯 Step 3: Get specific on deliverables If the focus is on increasing win rates, what’s needed beyond just personas? - > Persona profiles: Core buyer personas, pain points, triggers, buying journey maps, and content preferences. - > Messaging guide: Value propositions, key messaging themes with proof points, objection handling, and specific talking points. - > Sales enablement toolkit: Persona-specific pitch decks, talk tracks, one-pagers, FAQs, and objection-handling guides. 🎯 Step 4: Gather data Given the timeline and goals, what’s realistic for research? Examples could be: - > Deploy a customer survey to 200 customers to refine and segment personas. - > Analyze 10 closed sales deals within ICP. - > Conduct 5 in-depth customer interviews for qualitative insights. 🎯 Step 5: Build, test, and iterate Once stakeholders agree on the research plan and deliverables, start building and validating. - > Develop personas and associated messaging. - > A/B test messaging to validate impact (e.g. using emails) -> Collect sales team feedback on persona usability and messaging effectiveness. Key takeaway: Working backwards forces clarity and also makes it easier for you to counter unrealistic times.  I have been working through this process with dozens of clients to help them get more clarity. I’d love to hear from you! How do you approach vague project requests? #productmarketing #coaching #GTM #productivity #career