Key Performance Indicators – Are yours on track?

As we head into the middle of the year, it is time to look at your KPIs and take stock of where you’re at, what you need to give attention to and whether you are moving in the right direction to achieve those targets.

According to KPI.org,

“Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are the critical (key) indicators of progress toward an intended result. KPIs provides a focus for strategic and operational improvement, create an analytical basis for decision making and help focus attention on what matters most.”

Whilst most people create KPIs for their career, a lot will often overlook KPIs for their personal life. They need to work together if you’re going to achieve the lifestyle you want.

Meeting your KPIs for your career should not come at the cost of your personal life. For example, working long hours that leave no time for exercise or eating well.  Eventually, you may achieve your career KPIs, but they’ll be hard to maintain into the future if your health begins to decline.

What is a personal KPI?

It’s easy to think of those key markers for your career: pay increase, promotion, leadership roles… But what is a personal KPI?

The first thing I ask my clients to think about is what makes them happy. What would they like more of? Or less of? What are their values? Are they doing things they feel good about? Are they making a difference in the world (and is that what they want to do)? What about their health? Do they have fitness goals? What about relationships – are they satisfying, and could they be better?

Balancing career and personal KPIs.

I’m sure you get the picture now, but if you’re still not clear on your own personal KPIs. it would be advantageous to go through the Wheel of Life exercise. This will help you break down the components of your life and give you a clear picture of what you are currently achieving, what you want to achieve and how to move forward. Obviously, career goals form part of this, but there are seven other life areas we consider. Once you have your personal goals insight, you can then set realistic career goals and define a pathway that will keep your KPIs in balance.

Tips for setting your KPIs:

1. Be clear about what you want the objective to be,
2. Ensure all stakeholders (yes, we have stakeholders in our personal lives too!) have been made aware of your KPIs to ensure you are supported in achieving them,
3. Review your KPIs regularly (like, monthly) and adjust as needed,
4. Be realistic and make sure you can achieve your KPIs.

As Peter Drucker, author of “The Effective Executive”, once said, “No institution can possibly survive if it needs geniuses or supermen to manage it. It must be organized in such a way as to be able to get along under a leadership composed of average human beings.”.  This applies even more now that the lines between work and home can easily become blurred as more and more people work from home. Workplaces are no longer looking for people who excel solely at their jobs. Instead, they look for people who have found a good balance between career and life. Those are the people who will be the heart of the company and drive it forward in this crazy world.

Find your balance. Find your KPIs and keep yourself on track.

Need help determining your KPIs? Reach out and let’s chat about how I can help you move forward.