When team members fail to make the progress they should on a project, or are operating at a glacial speed, it is time to reexamine their goals.
Progress in anything large, long-term, or complex requires achieving a set of steps or milestones along the way. With each successive step, the desired outcome gets closer and more likely.
Team members who are stalled, delayed, or slow typically have lost sight of these steps or have failed to focus on the micro-steps or goals that make them up.
Giving a struggling team member a smaller, more temporal goal relieves some of the pressure on performance and allows them to concentrate on a highly achievable goal. Once the new micro-goal has been completed, they can then turn their attention toward the next one.
Technically speaking, micro-goals are small, manageable, and clearly defined steps that contribute to achieving larger, more long-term goals.
Instead of focusing on a distant and somewhat intimidating objective, micro-goals break that objective down into tiny, actionable tasks that can be completed more easily and quickly.
Ideally, the small wins add up quickly and build the momentum that less effective team members need to get back on track.
Studies show that micro-goals bypass the psychological barriers some team members experience when approaching a larger task. They help team members fight the perfectionism, procrastination, and anxiety that can get in the way.
As the series of successes adds up, micro-goals also help team members to maintain the positivity and motivation they need to excel.
The smaller the milestone or step, the better. Within reason. Whatever is most manageable and a step forward is the best micro-goal to set.
When team members are really lost or stuck, good leaders avoid the temptation to point to more than one micro-goal at a time. Instead, they suggest a single and achievable micro-goal, wait for it to be completed successfully, and then design the next one.
Once a string of successes occurs, team members are typically able to identify the best next steps on their own.
When team members focus on the smallest steps, the larger objective not only seems more achievable, but progress toward it continues.
The best leaders know that the smallest goal can sometimes be the largest motivation.
