Setting goals is an important part of both our professional and our personal lives. As personal trainers, our programming depends heavily on having a good understanding of what our client’s goals are. We’ve spoken many times about using the S.M.A.R.T. goal method to set goals for yourself, but have you heard about OKR’s, or Objectives and Key Results? In this article we are going to explain to you what these are, and how you can use them to achieve more in life and at the gym!
What Are OKRs
OKRs, or Objectives and Key Results, are a method and a process to set and achieve goals. The term OKRs has been popularized by John Doerr, author of Measure What Matters, after being mentored by Andy Grove.
This system for setting and tracking goal progress has been used by companies like Google, Netflix, and even Bono, lead singer of U2 has used this method for his charitable work. It allows you to look at your goals in a step-by-step way, giving you little-wins along the way to achieving the main goal.
The objective is the main goal – or the what. This should be something specific and measurable, and inspiring. In the example of Google, they wanted to make the best internet browser on the market. Specific, measurable, and definitely inspiring to everyone working on the project.
The key results are the how. These are milestones along the way that when achieved will bring you closer to your objective. In the example of Google, their key results were based on users. Each year they set their key results to be a certain number of users using Google Chrome, and every year they would report back on whether or not they met those goals.
By communicating the OKRs to the entire Google Chrome team, everyone knew exactly what the company wanted to achieve and what it would take to achieve that.
How You Can Use Them to Achieve Your Health and Fitness Goals
There are a few elements that must be included in order to use OKRs to their fullest potential. First you need at least 1 objective. Remember that you have to be specific, measurable, and inspiring. This can be Running a half-marathon next fall after recovering from an ankle injury last fall.
This is specific and measurable because we know exactly what you’ll be doing (running a half-marathon next fall) and inspiring because you are coming off of an ankle injury and initially may have thought that you running career was over.
Now for the key results. Remember that these are the “how” of your objective. What are the key results between now and that half-marathon that you’ll need to keep track of in order to achieve that goal of running a half-marathon? These could be things like getting the green-light from physio; training the half-marathon distance without pain at least once before the race; working on foot and ankle stability/mobility with a personal trainer.
Whatever your goal is, think about how you can break down that goal into smaller goals that will help you achieve the main objective.
If you have a weight-loss goal, OKRs are a great option to help keep you motivated. Setting key results would give you those endorphin-boosting little-wins that are crucial for maintaining a consistent effort at the gym.
If you want to get really technical, you can even use OKRs for specific exercises at the gym. Let’s say your goal is to deadlift 2 plates by the end of this year. Your key results could include hiring a personal trainer, working on mobility 2x week, working on your core strength 3x/week, and deadlift 2x/week. Each of these smaller goals will contribute to the larger objective of deadlift 2 plates by the end of this year.
To learn more about how to use OKRs check out this TED talk from the John Doerr and learn from the man who has helped many businesses and individuals achieve their goals with OKRs.
