Planning for the New Year – Goal Setting and the Rule of Three

OK, so I said we were going to begin goal-setting.  Well, we are, but one of the biggest problems with goal setting (and New Year’s resolutions) is that we set too many goals, or goals that are too large, and then we get overwhelmed and give up.

So here’s my twist on goal-setting for 2006 – don’t set too many goals.  When you set a goal, spend some time thinking about and estimating how long you actually think it’s going to take to accomplish that goal.  Then build in some additional time for the unanticipated.

Start with setting only three goals for your practice for 2006.  Three is a manageable number, and any more than that starts to get overwhelming.  Make sure you choose the three goals that you think will have the most impact, or that are the most urgent, and focus all of your time on those three goals.  Anything that doesn’t work toward those three goals should be put on the back burner.  That’s the only way to stay focused.

I am a big fan of Sean D’Souza, and he is a big fan of the Rule of Three.  In fact, he says if you don’t set goals and stick to the Rule of Three, you’re “going to head right bang smack into trying to do too much in too little time.”  As Sean says, even with three projects, there are going to be lots of little ‘to-dos’ under each project.  But if you choose three measurable projects, all of your sub-projects and to-dos will fall under those three projects, and the rest will have to wait until one of the three is completed.

Take some time thinking about which projects you will choose and evaluate them – why are you chossing them and what do you envision the outcome to be?  Write down the list of your three projects and keep it posted somewhere you can see it and be reminded every day.

Follow the Rule of Three and get rid of that impossibly long list of things you want to accomplish this year.  After all, with practicing law, do you really need more than three projects or tasks to focus on in a year?  I don’t think so.  Setting too many goals for yourself will just frustrate you, and we want a year of ‘ease,’ not a year of frustration, in 2006!