Rethink Your OKRs: The Key is Progress, Not Results

Focus on What You Can Do, Not on What You Can’t Control

Having a brilliant idea and watching it fade due to a lack of direction is a real shame. Many entrepreneurs, managers, and CEOs face this challenge. Without a clear structure to set goals and measure progress, success becomes elusive. There is a simple solution: OKRs (Objectives and Key Results). But... before you tell me that you already know how to apply them, let me give you a twist to this story.

OKRs should not set outcome-based goals, but progress-based goals. Progress is something you and your teams can directly influence, while the outcome is an indirect consequence of that progress.

Many leaders fail not because of a lack of skills, but because they guide their teams toward incorrect or uninspiring goals (focused on outcomes). This lack of clarity and purpose can lead to stagnation and demotivation.

Let me give you an example: Instead of setting an outcome-based goal like “Increase revenue by X%” (where the final result depends on multiple external factors such as the market, competition, or even the economic situation), you could define a progress-based goal like: “Contact X potential clients or users each month” (where the final result depends directly on you or your team).

This doesn’t mean you should abandon your vision. I simply want to share that OKRs are an effective tool to keep your team aligned and motivated. They are not designed to control the outcome but to ensure that each step brings you closer to that result.

And that’s an important difference that I encourage you to keep in mind.