A Step-by-Step Guide to Tackling Big, Vague Goals
Imagine, you are given an objective by your boss, the scope is wide, and the expertise level is low but it’s on you to get an outcome. This is common in the start-up world, you face new challenges each day, big goals are set, and you need to ultimately get a net positive outcome (get closer to the goal).
How do you start?
Remember, this is not problem-solving, you are not fixing something that’s broken instead you are working towards solving a vaguely defined objective.
Step 1: Define the objective.
Make it make sense, we all have our ways of doing this. Write out the objective and everything surrounding it, and draw a diagram or whatever crafty thing helps you stay on track.
Ask yourself two critical questions, thinking about what your boss or the company needs:
What does done look like?
What does done well look like?
These will help you understand what the objective really is, and help you know when you're getting close to “done”.
Step 2: Find out what you can.
You probably know very little about how to achieve the goal, so does everyone else at the organization, so how do you even approach it, no one can coddle you.
Start with research, talking to experts and maybe SWIPing ideas whilst remembering that these don’t necessarily contain the answer, but you need to develop a baseline of knowledge to begin the task.
To help you avoid relying too heavily on research or SWIPing you should also identify on a scale of 0-100%:
What parts are being innovated?
What parts are we using that’s been done before?
Step 3: Start to break down the different components of the goal, based on what you’ve learnt.
Identify each component and how they come together to the greater goal
Ask yourself “How much do I know about this compared to experts?”. This encourages you to continuously question your knowledge, how much you know, and which components can you seek expert advice on.
Most importantly, check in on the goal, are you still heading in the right direction?
Step 4: Take Action.
Use the information you have and data you have/may be generating to figure out what may be true. Each step from here is about execution (Setting clear, SMART goals, having a plan to deliver on time, Prioritizing effectively and choosing to not do stuff). So stick to the plan, tackle the components, check in on the goal, and you're soon sure to land at the objective. If not, time to rely on your problem-solving skills (you might just have to!)
