The status of my apartment building: smells like fresh bread.

The status of my apartment building: smells like potato chips.

The status of my apartment building (elevator): smells like vomit.

The status of my apartment building: smells like chicken soup.

The status of my apartment building: smells like roasted garlic.

The status of my apartment building: smells like chicken tenders.

The status of my apartment building: smells like schmaltz.

Why Setting Ambitious Goals Backfires:

… the board asks the question: “Shouldn’t we be more ambitious?”
Not wanting to admit a lack of ambition, we say “Yes” and ratchet the targets way up. Three months later, we’re back in front of the board … and clearly have an insurmountable hill to climb. Can you guess what happens next? We send an email to the entire team asking for ideas for new projects that’ll have the biggest impact on revenue growth in the next 90 days.
And just like that, we went from a long-term focused company to one demanding short-term results.

I’ve heard and experienced this exact story a hundred times in my career. Sometimes it makes sense to orient an entire company around attaining short-term results, but many times it doesn’t. This essay is a great insight into how decisions get made in companies.