End of the Year Reflection
Last night we held our St. Louis Staffing holiday dinner. Before our dinner, we participated in our normal business meeting reflecting on last month’s business and looking ahead to the next three months. I initiated an exercise that I’d done before and read about recently and seemed to make sense for this time of the year. I wanted to share it because I believe there is tremendous value for anyone who is a part of any group, no matter the size, to consider these three questions for their immediate future:
- What are we doing well and should continue doing?
- What should we START doing that we’re not doing now?
- What should we STOP doing that we’re doing now?
What are we doing well and should continue doing? Every member of an organization knows what things are working, what things are helping the organization to reach it’s goals. These things should be brought into focus as the organizations priorities. Simply stating them brings them top of mind and causes everyone to focus on them. There is a lot of value in doing what you do well and continue doing to do it.
What should we START doing? Everyone in your organization has an idea on a daily or weekly basis about something that will make their job easier or delight a customer or another member. These are the real innovative things that can propel an organization to the next level. The leaders of the organizations should never be depended upon to be the sole innovators. Every participant can and will come up with great ideas. The key is to tap into them and once they’re discovered, put them into action.
What should we STOP doing? Every member has some issue with something going on within your organization. It could be a customer that does not add value nor profit; it could be a procedure that is outdated and needs to be revisited; it could be a dress code that everyone feels passionately about but leadership hasn’t been made aware of.
Gather your team. Throw out these three questions and then act on them. You’ll be a better organization because of it.