Goal Clarity Map

What it is

From worries to one clear goal. Your mentee lists what bothers them, rates how much they control it and picks one goal.

When to send it

Send it after the first meeting. It suits the start of a programme, while the goal is still vague.

• After the first meetingit starts from what came up
• A vague goalmany topics, no focus yet
• A heavy stretchto sort what is in their hands

Filling it in

Twenty minutes, one question at a time. List your points, look at the map, then write one goal and a first step.

1. List what bothers youRate how much each bothers you and how much you control it.
2. Look at the mapTop right bothers you a lot and is in your hands.
3. Write your goal and first stepSay what you want, how you will notice it, and by when.

Reading the map

Look at the top right first. Points that bother a lot and sit in their hands are where to start.

• Start herebothers 4+ and control 4+
• Little controlbothers a lot, hard to move
• Where it sitsme, team, organisation or beyond work

Questions to ask

One question, then a follow-up. People who ask follow-up questions are liked more (Huang and others, 2017).

• Which point surprised you on the map?then: what does it tell you?
• For a point you hardly control, what small part can you influence?then: what would you try first?
• What will be different in three months?then: who would notice it first?

Why it works

Sorting concerns by how much you control them shows where effort pays: act where you have control, adapt where you have little (Forsythe and Compas 1987). A goal that says what you want, not what you want to stop, is better for well-being (Elliot and others 1997), and a clear goal with a way to see progress is easier to reach (Locke and Latham 2002).

Sources

• Covey, S. R. (1989). The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Free Press. (Circles of concern and influence.)
• Forsythe, C. J., & Compas, B. E. (1987). Interaction of cognitive appraisals of stressful events and coping: Testing the goodness of fit hypothesis. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 11(4), 473–485.
• Elliot, A. J., Sheldon, K. M., & Church, M. A. (1997). Avoidance personal goals and subjective well-being. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23(9), 915–927.
• Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (2002). Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation: A 35-year odyssey. American Psychologist, 57(9), 705–717.

How a tool works on Mentornity

1. 1The mentor picks a tool from the library and sends it with a short message.
2. 2The mentee fills it in step by step; the answers are saved as they go.
3. 3Both see the answers, comment on any part and agree the next steps.
4. 4Only the two of them see the answers, not the program admins.

Guides for both sides

• Goal Clarity Map for MentorsFor mentors and coaches: when to send the Goal Clarity Map, how to read the map, which questions to ask and how to agree a goal.
• Goal Clarity Map for MenteesFor mentees and coachees: what the Goal Clarity Map is, how to fill it in, where to find it and what your mentor does with it.

More tools: Goals and action

• Wish, Obstacle, Plan10 min

  Name a wish, picture the best outcome, find what inside you gets in the way, and plan for it with if-then sentences.

• Conversation Map15 min

  Talk one topic through: where you are, where you want to be, what already works, and one first step.

• Decision Balance15 min

  Weigh one decision: what you and people close to you gain or lose, how you would feel about yourself, and how others would see it.

All tools →