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Set Clear Goals
Leadership / Advice · Updated Apr 2026
Unclear goals produce unclear results.
What Makes a Goal Clear
- Specific. "Improve performance" is vague. "Reduce page load time to under 2 seconds" is clear.
- Measurable. You should know when you've achieved it.
- Owned. Someone specific is responsible.
- Time-bound. Has a deadline.
- Connected. Links to the bigger strategy.
Common Goal-Setting Mistakes
- Too many goals. If you have 10 goals, you have zero focus.
- Goals that measure output, not outcome. See Outcome Over Output.
- Goals set once and never revisited.
- Goals without ownership.
How Many Goals
3-5 per team per quarter. If you can't decide which 5, your strategy isn't clear enough.
The Test
Can everyone on the team recite the goals from memory? If not, they're not clear enough or there are too many.
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