How to Set Long-Term Goals Your Team Can Rally Behind
- Jacobs Branding Graphics & Website Designs
- 7 days ago
- 9 min read
Key Takeaways
Long-term goals provide clarity, alignment, motivation, and direction — especially for small teams and nonprofits.
According to PwC, goal clarity improves team performance by 31% — but only 36% of organizations report having clear, communicated long-term goals.
The best long-term goals are simple, measurable, inspiring, and connected to your vision.
Team involvement increases buy-in and accountability.
High-performing teams don’t just set goals — they revisit them consistently and measure progress transparently.
Leaders must communicate the “why,” not just the “what,” behind every long-term goal.
Long-term goals fail when they’re vague, unrealistic, unaligned, or disconnected from daily work.
You don’t need a complex goal-setting system — you need a consistent one.
Table of Contents
Why Long-Term Goals Matter for Small Teams
The Difference Between Goals, Vision, and Strategy
What Makes a Long-Term Goal “Team-Friendly”?
How to Choose the Right Long-Term Goals
The Goal-Setting Frameworks That Work Best for Small Teams
How to Involve Your Team in the Goal-Setting Process
Communicating Goals So They Actually Stick
Turning Long-Term Goals Into Actionable Plans
Keeping Your Team Motivated Over Time
Tracking Progress Without Overwhelm
Common Mistakes That Cause Goal Failure
📌Why Long-Term Goals Matter for Small Teams
Long-term goals aren’t just “nice to have” — they’re essential for stability and alignment.
Small teams often rely heavily on clear expectations because roles overlap, bandwidth is limited, and direction matters more than ever.
Long-term goals help your team:
understand priorities
feel ownership
reduce confusion
make empowered decisions
avoid wasted time
connect their daily work to a bigger purpose
Research from PwC shows that organizations with clear goals are 31% more likely to outperform competitors.
And yet — most small businesses avoid long-term planning because it feels too rigid, too corporate, or too overwhelming.
But long-term goals don’t need to be corporate or complicated.
They just need to be clear, connected, and communicated.
📄The Difference Between Goals, Vision, and Strategy
These three concepts often get mixed up, so let’s untangle them:
Concept | Definition | Purpose |
Vision | The future you want to create | Inspires |
Strategy | The approach you'll take to get there | Guides |
Goals | The measurable outcomes you aim for | Focuses |
Example:
Vision: “Become the most trusted branding studio for nonprofits.”
Strategy: “Offer retainer packages + storytelling-focused design.”
Long-Term Goal: “Sign 25 nonprofit retainer clients within 3 years.”
Long-term goals translate your big dreams into practical targets.
👍What Makes a Long-Term Goal “Team-Friendly”?
Teams don’t rally behind a goal just because a leader says it’s important.
A good team-ready long-term goal is:
Clear (everyone understands it)
Measurable (you can track progress)
Relevant (it connects to your mission)
Achievable (but still challenging)
Inspiring (people feel proud working toward it)
Visible (you talk about it often)
According to Gallup, employees are 3.6× more likely to be engaged when they understand how their work contributes to organizational goals.
If the team doesn’t understand the goal or their role in achieving it, the goal won’t stick.
A long-term goal is only effective when your team feels emotionally and practically connected to it. Many small-business owners accidentally create goals that feel confusing or disconnected because they come from the leadership level with no real context.
To truly be “team-friendly,” goals must also be:
⭐ Emotionally Resonant
People don’t follow goals — they follow meaning.
Tell your team why a goal matters, not just what it is.
Example:
“We want to grow our retainer services” becomes… “We want to grow retainers so we have predictable income, reduce stress, and give everyone more stability.”
Meaning creates motivation.
⭐ Role-Linked
Everyone should understand their personal contribution.
Ask:
How does this role support this goal?
What part of the goal is this person responsible for?
What decisions will this goal help them make?
When people know their part, ownership skyrockets.
⭐ Resource-Supported
A goal without the resources to achieve it is a recipe for burnout.
Support includes:
time
tools
training
clarity
direction
support from leadership
Leaders often forget that teams need capacity to support long-term goals.
⭐ Flexible Enough to Adapt
The goal stays the same — the path can change.
Teams feel safe when goals aren’t rigid.
Flexibility builds confidence.
Gallup research shows that when employees feel emotionally connected to organizational goals, performance increases by up to 56%.
This is why long-term goals must feel human, not corporate.
🧠The Psychology of Goal Buy-In
People don’t support goals they didn’t help shape.
People don’t support goals they don’t understand.
People don’t support goals they can’t visualize.
That’s why team involvement is essential.
When team members feel ownership over a goal:
motivation increases
creativity improves
accountability strengthens
resistance decreases
Neuroscience research shows that humans are more committed to goals when:
they understand the “why”
they participate in the creation
they feel emotionally connected to the outcome
A Harvard Business Review study found that co-created goals improve commitment by up to 60%.
🎯How to Choose the Right Long-Term Goals
Your goals should align with:
your vision
your current stage of business
your team’s strengths
your market opportunities
your core values
Here are examples of strong long-term goals for small businesses:
For a creative studio:
Build a recurring revenue model with 20 retainer clients.
Expand into nonprofit partnerships or government contracts.
For a nonprofit:
Increase community reach by 50% over three years.
Develop three new strategic partnerships.
For a consultancy:
Grow into a multi-consultant firm.
Create an online curriculum with 1,000 enrolled students.
For a micro-team (2–5 people):
Streamline systems to reduce admin workload by 40%.
Build cross-training to reduce bottlenecks.
Remember:
Your long-term goals should push your team — not punish them.
✍The Goal-Setting Frameworks That Work Best for Small Teams
Small teams don’t need complex systems.
They need simple frameworks they can consistently use.
Here are the best ones:
⭐ 1. OKRs (Objectives and Key Results)
Used by Google, nonprofits, and high-performing teams.
Objective: ambitious, inspiring
Key Results: measurable, time-bound
🔗 Learn more here: What Matters
Example:
Objective: Become the go-to design studio for social impact brands.
Key Results:
Publish 24 educational pieces
Close 10 retainer contracts
Increase referral leads by 30%
⭐ 2. SMART Goals
Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound.
Works best for teams that need structure.
⭐ 3. Vision Mapping
Turn long-term goals into a visual roadmap.
Include:
milestones
timelines
dependencies
risks
resources
Visual goals = easier buy-in.
🤝How to Involve Your Team in the Goal-Setting Process
Team involvement increases ownership.
Here’s a simple process:
✔ Step 1: Share your business vision
Teams cannot help choose goals they don’t understand.
✔ Step 2: Brainstorm ideas together
Use sticky notes or online whiteboards (Miro, FigJam).
✔ Step 3: Look for patterns
Are multiple people suggesting similar priorities?
✔ Step 4: Narrow the list
Pick 3–5 long-term goals max.
✔ Step 5: Assign responsibilities
Even long-term goals need owners.
✔ Step 6: Document everything
If it’s not written down, it doesn’t exist.
Collaboration is the secret sauce behind team-backed goals. When your team helps shape the goals, they don’t just understand them — they believe in them.
Here are additional methods to deepen team involvement:
⭐ 1. Pre-Goal Surveys
Before your planning meeting, send a simple survey asking:
What do you think we should prioritize next year?
What roadblocks do you see?
What opportunities do you feel excited about?
What should we stop doing?
This surfaces ideas you may overlook.
⭐ 2. Team Vision Exercise
Ask each team member:
“Where do you see this business in three years?”
Patterns will appear:
stability
growth
niche specialization
better systems
improved communication
These patterns help shape meaningful long-term goals.
⭐ 3. Goal Prioritization Voting
List all proposed goals and allow your team to vote on:
impact
feasibility
alignment
excitement
People support what they help choose.
⭐ 4. Team-Led Goal Drafts
Let smaller groups draft potential key results or milestones.
This helps them feel directly invested in the direction of the company.
⭐ 5. Identify Goal Champions
For each major goal, assign a “champion” who acts as the communicator and motivator.
This role provides:
accountability
leadership development
shared responsibility
Champions create momentum.
Involving your team shows them you trust their voice — and trust inspires commitment.
💡Communicating Goals So They Actually Stick
Leaders often set goals once and never revisit them.
But people forget goals unless you make them visible and repetitive.
Here’s how to keep goals “front and center”:
⭐ Repeat goals in weekly meetings
Repetition builds alignment.
⭐ Add them to project management tools
Asana, ClickUp, or Notion.
⭐ Connect daily tasks to long-term goals
Help your team see the link.
⭐ Share client wins tied to goals
“This project directly supports our long-term goal of ______.”
⭐ Reinforce the “why”
People don’t follow instructions. They follow purpose.
✅Turning Long-Term Goals Into Actionable Plans
Long-term goals fail because teams don’t break them into manageable parts.
Use the quarterly breakdown method:
1. Big Picture Goal
Example: “Grow recurring revenue to 30% of total revenue.”
2. Annual Milestone
Example: “Increase retainers by 15%.”
3. Quarterly Priorities
Example:
Create two new retainer packages
Refine onboarding
Contact referral partners
4. Monthly Tasks
Example:
Update website services
Send client emails
Test pricing
5. Weekly Actions
These are the behaviors that drive goals.
Goals don’t succeed because of inspiration. They succeed because of consistency.
👀Keeping Your Team Motivated Over Time
Long-term goals require long-term energy.
Here’s how to keep engagement high:
✔ Celebrate milestones
Humans need psychological rewards.
✔ Provide clarity
Confusion destroys motivation.
✔ Offer autonomy
Let people choose how they complete tasks.
✔ Share progress transparently
Use dashboards or monthly check-ins.
✔ Address challenges early
Burnout often begins in silence.
A study from Deloitte shows that aligned, engaged teams experience 40% higher productivity.
Motivation isn’t magic — it’s maintenance.
Long-term goals require sustained energy. Motivation naturally fluctuates, so leaders must create structures that keep momentum alive.
Here are more strategies your team will genuinely appreciate:
⭐ 1. Break Down Wins Regularly
Small wins feed consistency.
Examples:
One completed project that moved the needle
A new referral
Improvement in turnaround time
A client testimonial
Sharing wins triggers dopamine — a natural motivator.
⭐ 2. Reconnect Work to Purpose
Team members forget why a goal matters unless reminded.
Try:
Monthly “impact stories”
Showcasing how work affects clients or communities
Sharing before-and-after visuals or metrics
Purpose fuels endurance.
⭐ 3. Protect Workload Boundaries
Long-term goals fail when everyone is overwhelmed.
Protect your team with:
realistic timelines
capacity planning
clear communication
triage lists
Burnout kills motivation faster than anything else.
⭐ 4. Encourage Skill Growth
Teams stay motivated when goals help them grow professionally.
Ask:
What skills do you want to develop this year?
How can these goals tie into your growth?
Linking personal growth to company goals boosts engagement.
⭐ 5. Use Transparent Progress Tracking
People feel more committed to goals when they can see progress visually.
Use:
charts
dashboards
progress bars
scoring systems
goal trackers
📊Tracking Progress Without Overwhelm
Tracking should feel simple, not burdensome.
Here are tools for small teams:
⭐ Scorecards
Track 5–10 indicators weekly.
⭐ Dashboards
Notion, Google Sheets, AirTable.
⭐ Monthly reviews
Review what worked and what didn’t.
⭐ Retrospectives
Ask:
What should we keep doing?
What should we stop doing?
What should we start doing?
Progress isn’t linear — it’s layered. Tracking helps you see growth that isn’t obvious.
❌Common Mistakes That Cause Goal Failure
Here are the biggest pitfalls:
❌ Too many goals
Leads to confusion and burnout.
❌ Goals that don’t connect to daily work
People need relevance.
❌ Lack of clarity
Vague = forgotten.
❌ No ownership
If nobody owns the goal, nobody drives it.
❌ No tracking
You can’t improve what you don’t measure.
❌ Avoiding hard conversations
Unaddressed issues kill momentum.
Goal-setting is not the problem. Goal execution is.
Check out my post regarding a Small Business Leadership Blueprint for more information.
💥Conclusion
Setting long-term goals doesn’t need to feel overwhelming — and it definitely doesn’t need to feel corporate or rigid. In fact, the strongest long-term goals are usually simple, meaningful, and aligned with the heart of your business.
When your team understands the vision, participates in shaping the goals, and feels supported in the process, something powerful happens: everyone begins moving in the same direction.
Decision-making becomes easier.
Work becomes more intentional.
Energy increases.
And your business feels lighter because it finally has a shared destination.
The truth is that most small businesses don’t struggle because they lack talent or passion. They struggle because they lack alignment — and long-term goals create that alignment.
As a leader, your job isn’t to have all the answers.
Your job is to create clarity.
To provide direction.
To cultivate purpose.
To show your team where you’re going and help them see where they fit into that journey.
And when you do that consistently, long-term goals don’t feel like pressure. They feel like possibility.
They become invitations for your team to contribute their creativity, expertise, and ideas. They become opportunities to grow together. They become the structure that keeps your business grounded through every season — busy or slow, predictable or uncertain.
Your long-term goals don’t need to be perfect. They just need to be yours — created with intention, rooted in your vision, and supported by your team.
And you are absolutely capable of creating long-term goals your team can rally behind.
✨FAQs
How many long-term goals should a small team have?
Three to five is ideal.
How often should we revisit long-term goals?
Quarterly.
What if goals need to change?
They should. Businesses evolve.
What if team members don’t care about the goals?
They may not see their role — fix the connection, not the goal.
What’s the best tool for tracking goals?
Whatever your team actually uses: Asana, Notion, or Google Sheets.
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