3 Ways to Manage Progress Effectively to Achieve Your Goals

Most people want progress to happen in ongoing, incremental, consistent steps.

Unfortunately, progress doesn’t always happen that way.

Sometimes it can stall. Sometimes obstacles and setbacks derail it. Sometimes our own behaviours and habits get in the way. Sometimes the pace is frustratingly slow. Sometimes it is racing forward at a great pace.

Progress is rarely a linear path.

However, there are some practical things you can do to make the path of progress more consistent, predictable, and smoother.

The key is to have some simple strategies and a process that will help you to manage progress effectively, keep you on track, and to set yourself up to succeed.   

To help you get started with that, here are 3 practical strategies that will help you manage progress effectively and achieve your goals.

1. Proactively prepare to keep the path forward as clear as possible

When progress slows down, gets off track, or comes to a screeching halt, don’t let it demoralise you.  

Focus on proactively identifying and managing potential factors that could derail you or hold you back. Put things in place to deal with those things. Identify things that would smooth the path forward and make progress more consistent. Implement those things.

2. Create systems and procedures that keep you on track

When a pilot flies a plane, they have detailed systems and procedures they follow to ensure that they get from where they are to where they want to be.  

They have a review process and check system that they carry regularly and consistently. As a result, if they get the slightest bit off course they can take action to correct that very quickly. Hence, they keep making progress in the direction they want to go.   

Following a similar approach can help you to get on track and stay on track with achieving the goals and outcomes that matter most to you.

Create a review process. Do it frequently. Use what comes up during your review to make appropriate adjustments, alter your course if needed, and stop yourself getting off track. Identify what systems and procedures you could put in place that would optimise your progress. Implement them.   

3. Get clarity on the behaviours, habits, and emotional state you need to achieve your goals

Once people set their goals and plans, they usually jump straight into doing mode.

But that overlooks a critical factor in managing progress effectively.

You!

You can have the best goals and plans in the world, but if you don’t have the behaviours, habits, and emotional state you need to deliver those specific results, progress is going to be messy at best and nonexistent at worst.

Identify what behaviours, habits, and emotions you need to achieve the specific outcomes you desire. Work on creating those. Identify any current ones that might hold you back or sabotage your progress and results. Deal with them.

The bottom line:

Progress doesn’t happen by chance. It happens by design. Proceed accordingly!