Article: Celebrating Women's History Month

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Celebrating Women's History Month

Achieving our goals
March 2008 diversity newsletter

By Audra Bohannon, Vice President Consulting, Novations Group, Inc.

A few weeks ago, a friend and colleague mentioned that she was looking forward to attending some local events scheduled for Women's History Month. When I asked what inspired her to go, she responded, "I am in awe of women who accomplish goals in the midst of all the economic, social and personal challenges that we as women deal with on a day-to-day basis. As a wife, a mother, a manager, and the wearer of too many hats to name, I struggle to follow through with a regular exercise program! How did they do it?"

How did these women, some famous and some not so famous, find ways to meet professional and personal goals? I've watched people do it: set a goal, take action, and make it happen. Many of us have also seen people set a goal, take action, and nothing happens. What differentiates these two kinds of people?

Most of us want to go for whatever it may be, but obstacles get in the way. Over the last 20 years, I have seen not managing the obstacles affect—even control—many people. Despite progress made, it's still difficult for women to navigate corporate America with any certainty or stability. Furthermore, an additional dilemma exists particularly for women: it's easy to get caught in a cycle of day-to-day responsibilities, meandering through life without making things happen for yourself to the extent that you could. Being quite busy, not having enough hours in the day and still when it's all said and done, are left feeling unfilled. More women than I'd care to admit experience this challenge that compromises achieving their goals as their reality.

So how do you break the cycle while maintaining a balance between obligation and responsibility?

While there is no "one-size-fits-all" answer, there are strategies to help take control of a situation. To truly drive a personal or professional agenda, you must be able to deliberately and consciously identify your intentions, narrow your focus, and commit to a plan of action.

Based on what I've seen, I think an individual can take control of his or her destiny, while still being able to factor "life" into the equation. This approach involves three key steps:

Intent: Establish your intent by deliberately stating what it is that you must do. Clarity comes with consciously identifying the real goal. Your real intent is often inextricably linked to your values and beliefs. If you can see your intent tied to what you value, you're more likely to begin to focus on taking the necessary steps to get there.
Focus: Focus needs to be directed toward the time, energy, resources, and attention you are investing to shape a plan. It's a selective focus—you've got to prioritize actions that are directly related to your goal. Focusing really helps to minimize distractions such as relationships, internal noise, and external pressures. Distractions are not necessarily negative. Often, they have been incorporated into your lifestyle and, once you've committed to your intended outcome, only get in the way. The probability that you will make your intent a reality increases with the level and specificity of your focus.
Plan: You've articulated your intent, and you've focused your efforts to make it a reality. The next step is the real nuts and bolts—a plan. A plan includes the actions that you will have to take to achieve whatever it is that you want to achieve. If you've identified the intent and truly shaped your focus, the plan becomes a step-by-step blueprint for making your dream a reality.

Perhaps my colleague and other women can accomplish their goals, as the women honored during Women's History Month did, if they can win the conflict with themselves. That perspective, along with having Intent, Focus, and a Plan, can encourage girls and women to think larger and more boldly to reach all their goals.

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