How Habit Goals Can Redefine Your Journey

Hi everyone! Today, we’re exploring how to create and sustain habit goals that will elevate your professional journey at your credit union. Whether it’s about strengthening member relationships, boosting sales, or improving your own personal productivity, this session is tailored just for you.

But before we dive in, let’s clarify an important distinction: habit goals versus achievement goals. Achievement goals are outcomes-focus. Think, "I want to open 20 new accounts this quarter." These are measurable targets with a clear endpoint. Habit goals, on the other hand, focus on the process or routine. For example, "I will follow up with 5 members every day.”

The key difference? Habit goals are about consistency and creating a sustainable system that makes achieving bigger outcomes easier over time. While achievement goals are the destination, habit goals are the vehicle that gets you there. And that is today’s focus… habit goals. 
Every great habit starts with a clear "why." Understanding your "why" ensures your habits are aligned with your role and responsibilities at the credit union. 

If your focus is on meeting or exceeding sales targets, your "why" could be to build a habit of following up with at least five members daily to ensure you are nurturing leads.

Maybe you want to improve product knowledge. Your "why" might be to develop a habit of dedicating 15 minutes daily to studying new financial products or market trends, enabling you to provide top-notch advice.

We also know that time is a precious commodity. If reducing bottlenecks in your daily workflow is the goal, your "why" could be to establish a habit of organization – organizing your tasks by priority at the start of each day to improve efficiency.

Understanding your "why" creates a purpose-driven foundation. Take a moment to write everything down. This will keep you anchored when distractions or challenges arise.

Now, let’s make sure you have a goal that is SMART. Here’s what we mean:

• Specific: Your goal should be clear and precise. For example, "I will greet every member with a personalized question."

• Measurable: Make it easy to track. Ask yourself, "Did I do it or not?"

• Achievable: Check if it’s realistic within your daily workflow. Can you consistently manage this goal?

• Relevant: Ensure it aligns with your role or your team’s objectives.

• And finally, Time-bound: Set a time frame – like focusing on your habit for 30 days to make it stick.

Ah, but let's dig a little deeper. Consistency is the foundation of habit formation. My advice? Use a streak tracker to visually shows your progress, and here's why: Research suggests habits are often formed after 66 days of consistent practice, though the time required can vary to as few as 18 to as many as 254 days, all depending on the complexity of the habit and the individual. The streak tracker helps you stay committed during this critical formation period.

Of course, before we can begin to track our progress, we must know where to start. This means identifying the first action steps that will set you on the path to success. These steps should be small and manageable, clearly defined, easy enough to accomplish but significant enough to build momentum. Remember, it’s not about perfection.

Good habits and bad habits function in a loop: It includes the “Cue,” the “Routine,” and the “Reward.” And the craving is the engine behind this loop.

For instance: Let’s say you are avoiding calling members? The cue might be anxiety, the craving might be for distraction, and the routine might be procrastination.

Understanding this loop helps you take control and to design productive habits. Here's the kicker: Habits never really fully disappear. What we're talking about is learning to overpower those bad behaviors and force them into the background. And one way is to celebrate wins, aka the reward.

Recognizing wins keeps you motivated and engaged. And rewards don’t have to be big – they just need to be meaningful. When you celebrate progress, you reinforce consistency.

By focusing on habit goals, you’re investing in long-term growth. Let's make this year your best yet by grounding yourself in your "why.” Start with small, consistent actions, recognizing the craving behind bad habits and making sure we are redesigning your habit loop.

What’s one habit you’ll commit to building today? I’d love to hear about your journey, but until next time, keep showing up, keep striving, keep building your success, and remember... Ideas spark changes; actions ignite it.