Measures of Success
or, All That Glitters Is Not Goals

by Katharine Delahaye Paine

As we put together this first issue of The Measurement Standard, and launch our measuresofsuccess.com web site, it seems only logical to start with some explanation of what it means to measure success.

A measure of success is simply a clearly articulated, quantifiable goal—something to strive for—and, more importantly, a way to know if you're getting to or have gotten to where you want to go. It's one thing to say, " I want to be rich when I grow up." It's quite another to specifically define "rich" and "grow up." For example: "I want to have at least a million dollars in the bank by the time I'm 40."

Practical measures of success can vary widely according to one's goals, from "Getting my team out alive," to "How many neighbors' names you know." Read about these and more in this article elsewhere in this newsletter. (And learn how you can earn yourself a KDPaine & Partners' History Of The World folding ruler.)

For myself, after starting The Delahaye Group, I had fairly straightforward measures of success that were clearly tied to the business: I wanted to be featured in Fast Company and interviewed by David Brancaccio on "Marketplace," the evening business program on National Public Radio. After I'd achieved those goals, I felt more comfortable about selling the company.

Today, three years and many trials and tribulations later, I am launching a new company with very different goals, goals that focus more on making a difference and less on reaching my audiences. Sure, I still have fantasies about being interviewed by Ira Glass on "This American Life," or by John Rogers of New Hampshire Public Radio's "Front Porch," but, really, my new measure of success concerns the access every marketer, public relations or communications professional has to tools and advice for setting up a measurement program. Today, if you interview people around the world, some 90% say they need measurement tools, but don't have them or don't use them. I'll know I've achieved my goals when we cut that number to less than 10%.

So throughout The Measurement Standard newsletter and measuresof success.com web site, we'll be bringing you different measures of success, some admirable and worthy of adoption, others that may be wrong-headed or downright dumb. We'll point out the value of the good ones and the fallacies of the bad ones, but most of all, we'll show you how measurement systems help you get to where you're going.

Think of a system to measure success as a sort of handheld personal global positioning system that tells you where you are at any given minute, and helps you get to your chosen destination. It's fine and dandy to say that your ultimate goal is to "prevent further hostilities," but it's another to have a system in place to know how your communications are affecting the hostile atmosphere.

Just as GPS systems connect to different satellites in different parts of the world, the measurement systems we design will be different for each individual, in each country, each industry, or type of organization. We welcome your comments and suggestions concerning these new endeavors of ours, and we and wish you personal success in setting and achieving your own measures.