A recent article in the Academy of Management Review ("Stairways to Heaven: An Interlocking Self-Regulation Model of Negotiation" by Joan F. Brett, et al, 1, 1999) present an intriguing thought about goals. True, the authors are speaking to the issue of negotiations, but their ideas are relevant for anyone in the process of setting goals. And this time of the year (December 2000) is an excellent opportunity to once again consider the "hows" of effective goal setting.

The authors speak about the process of goal discovery in the negotiation process. That is, some goals change as the individual values change or are discovered. For example, you walk into a car dealership with the intention of not spending more than $25,000 for a car. However, your goal shift when the dealer agrees to throw in air conditioning if you purchase a particular car at $26,000.

The point is that goals can be discovered along the process of achieving them.

Here's what the authors of the Management Review article say, 
 

Emphasizing goal discovery as part of the negotiation process shifts the focus on negotiation from how negotiators 'get what they want' to include also how the process of negotiation lead negotiators to 'discover what to want.

It strikes us here at Time Manager international that there is some solid advice relevant to individuals who are in the process of setting goals. Some goals are initially defined in such a way that they only become appropriately "discovered" as we move along the road to their accomplishment.

For example, it's possible that an athlete set a goal to win a certain contest. In the process of competing, however, the medal be lost, and the goal could shift to "winning with grace." Or the athlete be injured in the course of competition and the goal shift to fast recovery to be ready for next season.

As you set your goals for 2001, keep the idea of goal discovery in mind. You end up negotiating yourself to a different set of goals that are more appropriate and in keeping with your current situation. Life is, after all, an evolving process, so there is no reason for our goals to not also be discovered as move along their path.

Janelle Barlow, President
TMI, US
 
 
 
 
 
 

Please submit your questions to Time Manager Questions and Answers. If you have questions, undoubtedly someone else has the same question. By asking a question, you'll help a fellow Time Manager user become more effective.
 
 

Previous "Time Manager Q & A Corner" pages: 
 

#1	Key Areas and Interruptions
#2	Daily Plans and Home Offices
#3	Result Statements
#4	Reading and Responding to E-Mail
#5	Sending E-Mail
#6	Filing According to Key Areas
#7	Setting up Files for the Whole Office
#8	Controlling Loose Pieces of Paper
#9	The Value of Time
#10	More on Results Statements
#11	Managing Time on the Road
#12	How to Get Time with Someone
#13	The Downside of Goals
#14	Thinking Types and Time
#15	Feeling Types and Time
#16	Intuitive Types and Time
#17	Sensate Types and Time
#18	What's Real about Strategic Planning?
#19	What Does Being Strategic Really Mean?
#20	How Perception of Time Influences Goal Choices
#21	The Four Immutable Laws of Controlling Your Desk
#22	Decision Making and Cultural Groups
#23	Paperless Office: Fact or Fiction?
#24	Exit Planning
#25	Speed: Does It Free Up More Time?
#26	Time in the 21st Century
#27	Open Office Plans
#28	The Costs of E-Mail
#29	How Do Senior Level People Manage Their Time?
#30	On Saving Time
#31	Paying the Ultimate Price with Time By Not Getting Enough Sleep
#32	Telecommuting and Productivity
#33	How Much Is Your Time Worth?
#34	Goal Setting and Change
#35	Making Career Decisions
#36	Controlling the Volume of Paper
#37	The Soul Catcher and Time Management
#38	Goals and Team Work

Please submit your questions to Time Manager Questions and Answers by fax or e-mail . If you have questions, undoubtedly someone else has the same question. By asking a question, you'll help a fellow Time Manager user become more effective.

Link to Time Manager 

tel: 702 939-1800

fax: 702 939-1804

email: 

Website designed by 
©2005, TMI US