With a smile on your face, you set some killer-smart Q3 goals last month; hopefully, now that it’s time to check on your progress, you’re still smiling.

Remember, goal-setting doesn’t just include the revenue targets your management hands down to you, you must set specific account and skill development goals too. We’re talking about "growing Acme Inc by 50% this quarter" and "improving my ability to deliver the company’s value proposition."

Believe it or not, today marks the 20% mark into Q3, which is a great time to rate your performance against the goals you set….your non-revenue goals.

Goals mean nothing without a measurement protocol. The OKR system is good and simple (Objectives and Key Results), but MySalesDay recommends the SMART system because it has more teeth and is simple.

S = Specific. "Break the Acme Inc. account for $100k in Q3" is very specific. "Break the Acme Inc. account" is not. (This is easy, right?)

Measurement, what specifically are the criteria that will measure success for your goals? When it’s an account-based goal, the measurement is easy: break Acme Inc. for $100k. The measurement criteria are there, and the answer will be binary: yes, no. You’ll break it, or not. But what about a skills goal like growing your objection-handling skills? You’ll have to think of ways that can be measured.

A is for Achievable. You want to stretch, but you don’t want to tear ligaments doing it. This one involves some subjectivity, but the issue is creating easy goals.

Relevant comes next, aligning with what the company wants or not. Maybe Acme Inc. is not the type of account the company cares about and therefore doesn’t want you to focus on it.

T is for Time-bound. This is handled for you because you’re developing quarterly goals. Your time period is 90 days. Again, simple, right?

Dust off those goals you wrote a few weeks ago and check your progress. Remember, you’re appraising your non-revenue goals; your company is tracking your quarterly revenue, and you know exactly where you stand.

Wait…WHAT? You haven’t begun working on your non-revenue goals?

Alright. That’s fine. Actually, that’s quite normal at this early stage in the quarter…20% in. In that case, today’s DO is dusting off your goals and getting a plan of action together to work them.

Goals are just dreams without a timeline, and the timeline for Q3 goals ends September 30.

Only two things really matter about goal exercises: one, you must write them down, and two, you must measure them.

This being the 20% mark into the quarter, it’s a good time to review the non-revenue goals you set a few weeks ago. Remember, to get into the TOP 10%, you must establish a goal-setting protocol that focuses on specific account goals (e.g. "…grow ACME Inc. by 30%") and skill development (e.g., "improve negotiating skills so I CAN grow ACME by 30%".)

Use the SMART protocol presented in the SKILL section to review your progress against your goals today. Here’s a little bit more to help you:
S: Specific. Do you need to edit your goals to make them more specific? It’s perfectly fine if you do.
M: Measurable. For example, how will you know if you’re a better objection handler on September 30 versus when you set the goal on April 1?
A: Achievable. If you are high-fiving yourself because you’ve already nailed your goals, maybe, just maybe they were too soft to begin with. Again, go for the edit.
R: Relevant. Have there been changes inside the org with your offering or product mix that has affected how germane your goals are? Edit!
T: Time-bound. Well, hey, you’re 20% in…you’ve either started working on your goals or are behind. That’s okay if you’re behind, just consider today that wake-up call you need to re-focus.