There’s something energizing about the beginning of a new year. Boards and staff leadership re-enter their work hopeful, motivated, and ready to make meaningful progress. But hope without intention rarely leads to alignment, and it rarely leads to meaningful results.
One of the most common patterns we see in leadership is this: they begin the year with a lack of clarity on what their most important shared goals are. Sometimes the Lead Pastor or CEO of the organization has it in their head, but it’s not nearly as common that the entire leadership (board, staff, other key leaders) is clear on their top goals much less their strategy to achieve them.
Without a clear set of top-level objectives, even well-intentioned planning becomes siloed. Each body of leadership pulls toward what makes sense to them. People throughout the organization end up rowing hard but not necessarily rowing together!
High-Performing Leaders Start the Year With Shared Goals
Leadership needs to FOCUS by establishing, protecting, and communicating the priorities that matter most. It is the discipline of choosing with intention and aligning the leadership around those choices.
Leadership that excels at creating focus do something many teams never slow down to do. They take time at the beginning of the year to clarify a small set of shared strategic objectives that guides the work of all leaders. Not just personal resolutions – but the goals of the organization in sync.
When boards, staff, and other key leaders do this and then communicate those priorities clearly, the odds of meaningful impact increase dramatically compared to leadership that do not.
How To Create Shared Focus
Shared focus does not emerge accidentally. It is designed through intention and discipline.
- Schedule a time when all leaders – Board, Staff, and other key leaders – can gather early in the year (preferably January). This needs to be the only agenda item for a 2+ hour strategy meeting.
- Start by looking back. Reflect on the year behind you. Review progress, name what worked and what did not, and identify the lessons that matter most.
- Let learning shape the year ahead. Based on the insights, identify the few outcomes that truly require shared leadership for this year. Keep the list short and meaningful.
- Commit as a team. Ensure the focus is truly shared. Name owners to agree on how progress will be reviewed and clarify what will be deprioritized to protect focus.
What Shared Focus Looks Like in Practice
Leaders with clear annual strategic objectives can answer these questions with confidence:
- What are the three to five strategic objectives we need to make meaningful progress this year?
- What does progress look like for each one?
- Who is responsible for shepherding each objective?
- What milestones will signal progress?
- What must we stop doing to make room for this focus?
The beginning of a new year is full of possibilities. But possibility becomes power only when it is focused. Your leaders have the opportunity to set the tone for the entire organization. By choosing a few shared strategic objectives, you create a rallying point that turns scattered effort into momentum.
As you step into 2026, take the time to set that clarity together. Two or three hours of thoughtful alignment now can unlock a year of meaningful progress. Your leaders are capable of extraordinary things when they are rowing in the same direction!
John V. Clark, President/Partner
The James Company
Phone: (815) 353-8997
Email: jclark@jamescompany.com
Recent Comments