As we approach the end of a calendar year, many of us have the practice of looking back on the year that was, reflecting on the highs and lows of the year – and shape our dreams and aspirations for the coming year.
At Software People Stories, we are running a special series of conversations with people on their own approaches as well as practices and stories of how their thinking has changed over the years.
Today, I am in conversation with S Gopalan, my colleague from PM Power and an industry veteran. He prefers to be called Gopal.
In this conversation he shares
- That reflections are good
- How his own perspective on annual cycles of appraisal [and feedback] have changed over time
- That he is not fond of setting goals such as losing weight within a fixed timeline, as effective, but rather prefers to take up things that would help make changes in his daily routines
- How taking micro goals per day, could possibly be accumulated and sometimes ‘binge’ completed
- The benefit of making commitments public
- How his approaches are different when reflecting on two different contexts that he is actively associated with: a loosely structured team and a more structured team with tight timelines
- What we, as coaches, need to think about differently – about tools to help us deliver more impactful engagements
- The value of reflections – to make one feel more secure and confident of the future
- You should have a plan, but be open to modifying that to adapt dynamically
