Americans seem to think in 90-day increments. Declutter your home in 90 days. Lose 20 pounds in 90 days. Grow your own vegetable garden in 90 days. (Or, in my case, kill any type of garden in 90 days.)
Ninety days can be limiting. Think, 90-day warrantee, 90-day product trial, and 90-day return policy.
We do it in business, as well. CEOs and other organizational leaders feel compelled to share 90-day messages with their audiences. In fact, some are required by their Board of Directors to issue such statements. Certainly, many companies have 90-day probationary periods for new hires, and a lot of corporations provide quarterly updates.
I’m curious. Who decided 90 days was a benchmark? Sure, it makes sense when measuring a company’s financial performance. Afterall, 90 days represents a quarter. But, when it comes to store return policies, retailers are actually all over the place. Nordstrom, Costco, and Target are standouts for having generous return policies. With regard to employment, 90 days seems to be a nationwide probation standard, though it’s difficult to determine if individual states have specific laws or general performance evaluation guidelines. For matters impacting our health, the benefits of losing weight or quitting smoking can be immediate, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s easy to make a drastic change in just 90 days.
In the communications field, a quarter is actually a great way to break down a year-long series of marketing and messaging goals into smaller, more focused pieces. A year-long goal may include several opportunities for impact, when executed over many months and utilizing a variety of tactics and tools. By scaling a campaign or program into quarterly objectives, achievements become more manageable and clients are given the opportunity to pivot if something isn’t working as well as expected.
When planning year-long goals, consider giving them the “90-day treatment.” You may actually exceed what you set out to achieve.
Categories: Consequence