Have you had your annual appraisal yet? Or done them for your own team members?
I won’t be doing any this year (which makes a change) but I will be sitting down and thinking carefully about what I want to get out of the year. This year has been a bit meh. Between getting covid, bouts of homeschooling, having to cut my work hours to fit round school, and seemingly endless school holidays it feels like I’ve barely managed to do any work at all.
And I had big plans, fun plans for my business and some cool projects I wanted to do. Literally anything that wasn’t contractually obligated or keeping the lights on didn’t get done.
Last year I wrote, “The only way to get what you want is to plan for it. Then follow the plan.”
Lol. Like that worked.
So next year, I’m taking personal planning with a pinch of salt. Is it going to be yet another year of ‘maintenance’? I truly hope not, and I know that at least having some goals will help me make decisions about how to spend the limited time I do get.
What about you? It is a good time to be thinking about what you want to get out of the next 6-12 months. Is it training? Is it a promotion? More visibility at work? “Better” projects, whatever that means for you?
Watch the free training on (realistic) goal setting – no SMART in sight!
To help you think through what you could achieve next year, and to help you stay on track, watch this free training on setting career goals and download my free Career Planner.
In the video, we talk about quarterly planning, setting goals, action plans, creating a support network to achieve those goals, non-negotiables and setting boundaries to give you every chance of success at achieving what you planned.
You’ll learn how to think through what you want to achieve, make a realistic plan and you’ll learn about some of the other objectives that project managers are setting themselves. Perhaps one of those will inspire you to hit your professional development targets this year?
Plus listen in to the Q&A as we talk about what’s important for project leaders as they build a professional profile and develop their skills with training and more.
Writing down your goals makes a difference
A study from the Dominican University in California carried out by psychology professor Dr. Gail Matthews in the Department of Psychology showed that writing down your goals really does matter. Participants who wrote down their goals were around 44% more likely to achieve or make substantial progress than those who did not (comparing Group 1 of the research ‘think about your goals’ to Group 4 (write goals, action commitment statements and share goals with a friend). I often see this quoted as 42% online, but my reading of the data available from the study doesn’t get me to that number, so I’m not sure what data sets are being compared for that.
Either way, it’s a big number…!
You know that if you want to achieve something, you have to plan it out, even if you know that real life might look a bit different. So if you want this year (or next year, or any year) to be a great year for you, career-wise, take some time to think about what those goals could be and how you are going to get there.
Heck, even if you don’t much care about having a great year and just want the next 6-12 months to not be awful, think about what that could look like and how you are going to make it so.
I remember my goals for getting through the year when we were parenting two under two were pretty low. So don’t think career planning only applies if you have lofty ambitions like achieving your PMP(R) certification or signing up for an MBA!
Get the only Career Planner you’ll need
My career planner template will help you work out what you want to achieve.
This document is fast becoming a project management institution! I’ve put it together the last couple of years (and completed it myself). It’s been downloaded hundreds of times and I hope this latest version will be truly useful to you as you plan out what you want to achieve.
Download your copy here.
Why career goals matter more than you think
Setting career goals isn’t just about ambition, it’s about direction.
In project management especially, it’s easy to drift. You take the next assignment. You accept the promotion that appears. You follow the opportunities that come your way. Before long, you’ve built a career by reaction rather than intention.
Clear career goals change that dynamic. They act as a filter for decision-making. When a new role, certification, or side project appears, you can ask: does this move me closer to where I want to be?
Goals also increase motivation. Research in performance psychology consistently shows that people perform better when working toward defined outcomes. Even loosely defined long-term targets improve focus and persistence. Without that anchor, it’s harder to justify stretching yourself, taking risks, or investing in development.
There’s also a confidence effect. When you articulate what you’re working toward, you start to see patterns. You recognize gaps in your experience. You identify skills to strengthen. Instead of feeling behind, you feel informed.
For project professionals, this matters because the field is broad. You could move into PMO leadership, program management, portfolio strategy, consultancy, training, tools specialization, or executive roles. Without goals, you may unintentionally narrow your options, or miss opportunities aligned with your strengths.
Career goals don’t have to be rigid or permanent. They evolve as your interests and life circumstances change. But having them written down makes your development intentional instead of accidental.
If you want your career to feel purposeful rather than reactive, goals aren’t optional, they’re foundational. So how are you going to approach yours this year?
