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edu/2010/08/the-positive-psychology-approach-to-goal-management/

2005 VOLUME 8 ISSUE 3

The Positive Psychology Approach to Goal

Management
Applying Positive Psychology to goal management increases
effectiveness.
BY CHARLES D. KERNS, PHD, MBA

Photo: Barrett Phillips

Business leaders manage goals by setting and systematically

striving to achieve them. While management and
organizational researchers have laid the groundwork for goal
management, the emerging field of Positive Psychology
appears to offer many additional findings and insights that
will help managerial leaders be more effective as they define and pursue
goals. Factors such as character strengths, optimism, and resilience can play
significant roles in how well goals are managed. In the end, a managerial
leader’s ability to make wise choices and to implement pathways that lead to
attaining desired goals is critical to success. Drawing from the field of Positive
Psychology, this article provides guidance to help you more effectively
manage goals by focusing on such factors as personal values, persistence, and
confidence.

Personal Values Commitment

Our values are at the heart of what is important in life and work. Effective
managerial leaders serve themselves and others best when they are committed
to a set of core values. This commitment takes three forms:

First, leaders need to be clear about what values they hold.

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 Second, they must effectively communicate their values clearly and
meaningfully to key stakeholders.

Third, managerial leaders need to ensure that their actions are in alignment
with their espoused values. This connection between what one says and what
one does can be described as one’s “Behavioral Integrity Quotient” or BIQ.
Leaders need to have a high BIQ act consistently with
their espoused values in order for others to trust them.
(To learn more about clarifying values, read “Creating and
Sustaining an Ethical Workplace Culture,” by Dr. Kerns.)

Photo: Barrett
Phillips

Value-Centered Goal Setting

Having committed to a set of core values, a managerial leader has a meaningful
context within which to make relevant decisions about the nature of the goals he
or she sets. Values give purpose and meaning to one’s goals. Values serve as a
strategic foundation for goal setting. Conversely, goals represent values applied
to specific life and work circumstances.[1]

While there are many useful resources to assist leaders in setting goals, as well
as empirical studies demonstrating the importance of goal setting in
organizational settings, these efforts largely ignore how to make the connection
between core values and the goal setting and attainment processes. For
example, Doug Smith, in his book Make Success Measurable! A Mindbook-Workbook
for Setting Goals and Taking Actions,[2] offers the SMART approach to specifying
goals: goals should be Specific, Measurable, Aggressive, Relevant and Time-bound.
On the empirical side, we read about important relationships between goal
attainment, expectancy and effort, with little explicit connection to the role of
core values in this important process.[3]

To enhance goal commitment and to build confidence in the goal setting

process, managerial leaders must personally commit to a set of core values.

The Effect of Core Values on Commitment and Confidence

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An extensive body of literature relates levels of commitment and confidence to
goal attainment.[4] This line of study shows that commitment to goal attainment
is enhanced when goals are perceived as important and when the performer has
a high level of confidence that the goal will be achieved. Commitment and
confidence will wane when goals are perceived as unattainable. The conclusion
to be drawn is that managerial leaders should not be setting or pursuing goals
that are unimportant or unattainable.

When reviewing the impact of core values on the level of commitment to goals
and confidence, we find a paucity of literature. It stands to reason that a leader’s
personal commitment to an important goal will be greater if the goal is
consistent with his or her core values. The alignment of core values to goals can
serve as a barometer of executive commitment. The executive must also be
confident that the goal is attainable. If an important goal is consistent with a
leader’s core values, he or she is more likely to persist in pursuing that goal, even
in the face of frustrating setbacks. This tendency to persevere increases the
likelihood that a goal can be attained, thereby inspiring confidence in attainment.
Thus, structuring important goals to be consistent with personal core values will
increase the commitment and confidence concerning one’s goals.

During the goal setting process, managerial leaders should ask themselves these
important questions:

How important is this goal?

How confident am I in the pathway/s chosen to attain the goal/s?

Is this goal consistent with my espoused core values?

This connection of value-centered goals with high managerial leadership

commitment and confidence likely contributes to executives and their
organizations feeling optimistic about where they are headed.

Balancing Persistence and Disengagement

Value-centered goals create a potent package for success when they are driven
by discerning managerial leaders who have confidence in their chosen
implementation pathways. In this scenario, value connected goals pursued with
confidence help drive executive persistence, even in the face of obstacles and
setbacks. Executive perseverance is a strength. However, if used without
discernment, perseverance can lead to disastrous results.
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It is also critical for executives to know when to quit. Giving up on value-centered
goals is especially difficult and stressful when the goals are aligned with core
values. In most cases, hard charging executives will find alternative pathways to
achieving value-centered goals. Executives and others will make creative
adjustments and implement alternative activities in seeking to implement highly
important value-centered goals.

Nevertheless, when there is convincing evidence that

realistic pathways for attaining the goal do not exist, it is
time to disengage. Doing so might be necessary, for
example, when the resources needed to achieve the goal
diminish to the point at which goal achievement is
impossible or impractical. The wise executive faced with
this situation will know to stop and thereby avoid
Photo: Lisa at
escalating the commitment toward a lost cause. Windward

To further refine the goal management process, Positive

Psychology offers some empirically supported practices that can help give
balance to executive decision making as it relates to setting and pursuing goals.

Seven Helpful Practices

The field of Positive Psychology was developed by Martin Seligman along with his
research associates at the University of Pennsylvania. Seligman’s own work[5]
and work with others[6] is helping to build a scientific basis for the study of
Positive Psychology. As Fred Luthans[7] notes, this work has increasing
application for organizational behavior and managerial leadership. This area of
thought provides us with a variety of frameworks and tools useful to help leaders
effectively manage goals.

In setting and pursuing goals, managerial leaders can apply seven practices
identified in the field of Positive Psychology:

1. Commit to a set of core values to enhance meaning and purpose.

2. Be sure that your goals are aligned with and are driven by your core values.
3. Align actions or pathways to achieve your goals with your Character Strengths.
4. Ask yourself regularly, “How confident am I that the actions and pathways we are
pursuing to achieve our goals are appropriate?”
5. Be persistent in pursuing your action plans and pathways for achieving your
goals until you obtain convincing evidence to do otherwise.
6. Display realistic optimism.
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 7. If you are confident about achieving your confirmed value-centered goals, apply
the proven skills of resilience when facing inevitable obstacles.

When the practical resources necessary to set and attain your goals are in place,
the above seven practices will help you clarify your personal commitment, gain
confidence, and persevere when engaged in the goals management process.

An Executive Snapshot
To walk through these practices, consider the example of George Wilson, CEO of
ABC Enterprises. Wilson designed, developed, and implemented a “Value-
Centered Approach to Goal Setting and Action Planning” for his organization
using these seven practices. Let the following highlights from this work be your
“take aways” for goal setting and management:

Take Away #1: Values Commitment

Wilson indexed his core values and focused his commitment by using the Value-
Based Checklist (http://gbr/pepperdine.edu/index.php/2010/06/Strengthening-
Values-Centered-Leadership/.) [8]Wilson’s five core values are:

1. Integrity
2. Responsibility
3. Fairness
4. Hope
5. Achievement

Take Away #2: Aligning Goals to Core Values

Wilson set five strategic goals, including one to downsize an operating division,
then rated each of his goals against each of his five core values. On a self-rated
scale of 1 to10 (10 being highest), all of Wilson’s goals aligned with each of his
core values with a rating of 8 or higher. “Fairness” was a particularly important
element in his organization’s downsizing activities.

Take Away #3: Aligning Character Strengths with Action

Wilson outlined five to ten key actions or pathways for attaining each of his five
strategic goals in light of his five character strengths. He had identified his
character strengths by completing the Values In Action (VIA, see
authentichappiness.org for the VIA strengths inventory). He considered how he
could utilize his character strengths to help achieve the five strategic goals. For
example, he brainstormed specific ways in which he would use his top strength,

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“wisdom,” to selectively counsel/advise his key reports on critical issues related to
downsizing. Wilson also decided to have his key reports identify their five primary
strengths by completing the VIA online.

Take Away #4: Regularly Check Your Confidence Level

After implementing his action plan, Wilson conducted quarterly self-audits over a
twelve-month period. He determined that his selected pathways to goal
achievement were effective.

Take Away #5: Be Persistent

Wilson regularly reviewed his action plans and determined that his pathways
were consistently on target. These self observations reinforced his perseverance
in pursuit of his course of action to attain his strategic goals.

Take Away #6: Be Realistically Optimistic

Based on his review of the books Learned Optimism[9], Authentic Happiness, and
the “Stockdale Paradox” found in Collins’ book Good to Great, Wilson did three
things to maintain an optimistic outlook as he pursued his five Strategic Goals:

1. He learned to separate factual evidence concerning potential obstacles to

achieving his strategic goals from subjective negative self talk.
2. He practiced positive self talk.
3. He made at least one encouraging positive statement weekly to each of his key
reports as they implemented aspects of the various action plans for the five
strategic value-centered goals.

Wilson identified the above three actions with the help of an executive coach and
information that Wilson gleaned from taking the Seligman Optimism Test.

Take Away #7: Be Resilient When Faced With Obstacles

After determining his Resilience Quotient (RQ), Wilson was better able to cope
with obstacles and setbacks proactively and more effectively as he pursued his
strategic goals. His RQ was obtained by completing the 56-item “RQ Test” found
in Reivich and Shatte’s book The Resilience Factor: 7 Essential Skills for Overcoming
Life’s Inevitable Obstacles. He found the skills of calming and focusing especially
useful when dealing with resistance from some of his key reports regarding
setting specific performance targets.

Conclusion
The effective management of goals can spell the difference between executive
success and derailment. You can put this process on track by understanding and
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applying some of the scientifically based practices from the field of Positive
Psychology, such as aligning goals with personal values and character strengths
as well as being confident, realistically optimistic, and persistent. These
applications to goal management can help you more fully utilize your character
strengths and optimism and be more resilient as you pursue your goals.

Beyond the practices offered here, executive coaches and managerial leaders are
encouraged to explore other ways that the findings from Positive Psychology can
be applied to enhance leadership and organizational effectiveness. One fruitful
starting point would be to review the Handbook of Positive Psychology edited by
C.R. Snyder and Shane J. Lopez[10]to enhance your understanding of potentially
relevant frameworks and tools that you may want to consider applying in your
work. This article’s application to goal management of practical “take aways” from
the field of Positive Psychology may well provide you with a useful springboard
for achieving your goals.

Additional Resources:
1. See Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook of Classification by Christopher
Petersen and Martin E. P. Seligman for a detailed review of 24 empirically derived
character strengths. Also, go to authentichappiness.org and click on the “Quick
link to VIA Signature Strengths Survey” and complete the survey to determine
your top five character strengths.
2. To enhance your optimism, refer to Authentic Happiness by Martin E.P. Seligman
and take the optimism test found in Chapter 6, or go to authentichappiness.org
and take this test on-line; review “The Stockdale Paradox” found in From Good to
Great by Jim Collins.
3. Skills of resilience have been extensively researched and documented by Karen
Reivich, PhD and Andrew Shatte, PhD in their recent book, The Resilience Factor: 7
Essential Skills for Overcoming Life’s Inevitable Obstacles. To assess your resilience
abilities, you are encouraged to take the self-rated “RQ Test” offered in the
Reivich and Shatté book found in chapter two. The seven core abilities of
resilience include: 1) recognizing and managing emotions, 2) impulse control, 3)
thinking favorably about the future, 4) causal analysis, 5) empathy, 6) self-efficacy
and 7) reaching out.
4. For a more detailed review of goal theory and related research, refer to: Locke’s
“Motivation Through Conscious Goal Setting.” [11]

[1] Locke, E.A. “Setting Goals for Life and Happiness,” Snyder, C.R. and Lopez, S.J.
(Eds.), Handbook of Positive Psychology. (New York, NY: Oxford Press, 2002). (For a
more detailed review of goal theory and related research refer to: Locke’s
“Motivation Through Conscious Goal Setting.”)
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[2] Smith, D.K. Make Success Measurable: A Mindbook-Workbook for Setting Goals
and Taking Action. (New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, 1999.)

[3] Pintrich, P. & Maehr, M. (Eds.). Advances in Motivation and Achievement, Vol. 10.
(Stamford, CT: JAI Press, 1997).

[4] Carver, C. & Scheier, M. “Three Human Strengths,” Aspinwall, L. G. and

Staudinger , U. M. (Eds.), A Psychology of Human Strengths: Fundamental Questions
and Future Directions for a Positive Psychology. (Washington, D.C.: American
Psychological Association, 2003.)

[5] Seligman, M. Authentic Happiness: Using the New Positive Psychology to Realize
Your Potential for Lasting Fulfillment. (New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 2002.)

[6] Peterson, C. & Seligman, M. Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and
Classification. (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2004.)

[7] Luthans, F. “Positive Organizational Behavior: Developing and Managing

Psychological Strengths,” Academy of Management Executive. 16 (1) 2002:57-75.

[8] Kerns, C.D. “Strengthening Values Centered Leadership: What, Why and How,”
Graziadio Business Review, 7 (2) 2004.
(http://gbr/pepperdine.edu/index.php/2010/06/Strengthening-Values-Centered-
Leadership/).

[9] Seligman, M. Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life. (New
York, NY: Pocket Books, 1998.)

[10] Snyder, C.R. and Lopez, Shane J. (Ed.) Handbook of Positive Psychology.
(Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 2002.)

[11] Locke, E.A. “Motivation Through Conscious Goal Setting,” Applied and
Preventive Psychology, 5, 1996:117-124.

AUTHOR OF THE ARTICLE

Charles D. Kerns, PhD, MBA

Charles D. Kerns, PhD, MBA, is a professor of applied behavioral

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science at the Graziadio School of Business and Management. He
has more than 30 years of business, management, and consulting
experience. Through his private consulting firm, Corperformance,
he has implemented performance management programs and
systems to help companies from many industries maximize their
results. Since 1980, he has taught in almost every program in the
Graziadio School, first as an adjunct faculty member, then, since
2000, as a member of the full-time faculty. He has also served as
the associate dean for Academic Affairs. Dr. Kerns holds a
Diplomate, ABPP, in both Industrial-Organizational Psychology and
Organizational-Business Consulting Psychology.

Graziadio Business School | Copyright © 2005 Pepperdine University

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