You are conducting a planning session with Mary Ellen, who reports to you. You've asked her to come prepared with a personal goal for the next quarter

satisfaction." How do you evaluate the effectiveness of Mary Ellen's goal?
What will be an ideal response?

Answer: Mary Ellen's goal is not likely to be effective. The key attributes of good goals are that they are specific, consistent, and appropriately challenging. Mary Ellen's goal lacks specificity. It is unclear what behaviors she will need to implement, and there is no clear way for her to measure "much more effort." To help Mary Ellen develop an effective goal, you would need to encourage her to identify measurable behaviors that she can track over time.