Goal Setting
Framework

GOAL SETTING TOOLS

Define and structure your goals before formalizing them into action plans.

Before the Action Plan

Most people jump straight to SMART goals. Specific, measurable, time-bound - the formula is familiar. But the formula works best when the goal itself is already clear, and that clarity is the part most people skip.

The 5W Exploration on the next page exists for that reason. Before you commit a goal to a deadline, it asks you to trace the goal's shape: what you're actually pursuing, why it matters now, where and when it will play out, and how you intend to approach it. Leaders who work through these five dimensions first tend to write sharper goals on the action cards - goals they can act on rather than goals they revise three weeks later.

The steps below start with exploration and end with commitment. The sequence is deliberate.

How to Use This Worksheet

  1. Start with the 5W Exploration, not the action cards. Pick a goal you've been circling and work through each of the five dimensions. Write freely - this page is for thinking, not for precision.
  2. Move through all five dimensions before editing. The tendency is to perfect "What" before touching "Why." Resist that. A rough pass through all five gives you more to work with than a polished answer to one.
  3. Look for conflicts between dimensions. If your "What" is ambitious but your "When" is next quarter, something needs to give. If your "Why" is thin, the goal may not survive contact with competing priorities.
  4. Transfer to the action cards once the goal is defined. Write the goal in concrete terms, identify the first action - not five actions, one - and set the target date.
  5. Use separate cards for separate goals. Three cards, three goals. If a goal needs more than one action card, it may be two goals.
1

5W Goal Exploration

Work through each dimension before committing your goal to the action cards.

WHAT

What specifically are you trying to achieve?

WHY

Why does this goal matter now? What changes if you accomplish it?

WHERE

Where will this work happen? What context, team, or environment is involved?

WHEN

When does this need to happen? What milestones exist along the way?

HOW

How will you approach this? What resources, support, or conditions do you need?

2

Goal Action Cards

Transfer each defined goal here. One card per goal. One action per card.

GOAL 1
Goal
Action
Target Date
Date Completed
GOAL 2
Goal
Action
Target Date
Date Completed
GOAL 3
Goal
Action
Target Date
Date Completed
3

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