‘Tis the season to… set goals.

Whether you’re brainstorming OKRs in a corporate conference room or wandering Joshua Tree with a pocket full of crystals manifesting your next moon cycle, you’re making choices about what you want to change in the future.

But this newsletter isn’t your typical goal-setting advice.

(If you need help crafting clear, motivating career goals, I’m your gal—hit me up.)

No, this is an ode to one of my favorite, underappreciated types of goals: counter metrics. And it’s my plea to you passionate powerhouses to add them to your arsenal.

Imagine you're this woman on the seesaw, determined to take it as high as it can go. But you didn’t have anything countering your blind ambition. So congratulations, you exceeded your goal… but I’m pretty sure you’re also dead?

Counter metrics keep you grounded, so you can chase your goals without unintended consequences.

Back in my tech days, I really could’ve used counter metrics. We’d dazzle clients with gorgeous graphics to boost sales—only to tank the site’s load time. Or we’d rush to launch a high-demand feature by the board’s deadline, leaving our team burned out and buried in tech debt.

The fix? Pair every goal with a counter metric:

• Yay, we sped up production! But did we maintain quality?
• Yay, we cut call resolution time! But did we solve their problems?
• Yay, revenue’s up! But did we alienate loyal customers?

I’ve had the same three goals since launching my business in 2022, and one of them is a counter metric:

1. IMPACT: Help people design careers they love, measured by client results, case studies, and testimonials​
2. REVENUE: Support my lifestyle, measured by surplus cash for future investments and retirement
3. BALANCE: Live a balanced life (and role model it), measured by time and energy for non-work aspects of life

Did you spot the counter metric?

Bingo! Balance.

Without it, I’d work every waking hour trying to help as many people as possible (I love this work), while sprinting for more, more, more revenue thanks to a lingering scarcity mindset.

But here’s the truth: there’s no impact or revenue without balance. If I’m not healthy, fostering relationships, or “filling the well” with experiences that make life rich, everything else collapses.

So, what counter metrics will you set to make sure your passionate, powerful drive doesn’t run you into a ditch?

Want an accountabili-buddy? Reply to this email, and I’ll check in on your progress in the new year!

Onward!
Grace

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