Every quarter, companies go through the same ritual: setting goals nobody will achieve. Let's be honest about what's really happening.
Week 1 of the quarter: Leadership sets aspirational goals. 'Aspirational' is corporate speak for 'impossible, but we'll pretend we believe in them.'
Week 6: Reality sets in. The ambitious launch date was never realistic. The resource requirements were underestimated. Unexpected issues arise (they're only unexpected if you've never done this before).
Week 10: Quiet conversations about 'adjusting expectations.' Nobody calls it giving up, but that's what's happening.
Week 12: Goal review Slack meeting. Everyone presents their '80% achievement' as a win. Some goals are mysteriously reworded to match what actually happened. Nobody mentions the goals that were quietly abandoned.
Week 13: New quarter begins. New goals. Same pattern.
Here's the truth nobody says out loud: we all know this is theater. We know the goals won't be achieved as written. We know they'll be adjusted or forgotten. But we keep doing it because… well, because that's what companies do.
Wild idea: what if we set fewer goals, made them actually achievable, and held ourselves accountable to them? Crazy talk, I know.