Decolonising Monitoring and Evaluation Practices: A Guide to Setting and Achieving Goals

Decolonising Monitoring and Evaluation Practices: A Guide to Setting and Achieving Goals

Setting and achieving goals is an essential aspect of personal and professional growth. Whether it's advancing in your career, improving your health and well-being, or pursuing a passion project, having clear goals can provide direction and motivation. In this article, we will explore the intersection between decolonising monitoring and evaluation practices and goal setting, and how these two concepts can work together to create meaningful and impactful change.

The webinar on decolonising monitoring and evaluation practices sheds light on the importance of challenging traditional frameworks and power dynamics in the field. It emphasizes the need to critically examine existing practices and question whose voices and perspectives are being prioritized. By incorporating a decolonial lens into our goal-setting process, we can ensure that our objectives are aligned with principles of equity, inclusion, and social justice.

To effectively decolonise our goal-setting practices, it is crucial to consider the following:

1. Identifying one priority: In a world filled with distractions and competing demands, it is essential to narrow our focus to one priority. By doing so, we can direct our energy and resources towards achieving that goal, rather than spreading ourselves thin. This approach aligns with the decolonial principle of centering marginalized voices and experiences, allowing us to prioritize and address the most pressing issues.

2. Setting goals slightly outside our reach: To challenge the status quo and push for systemic change, it is important to set goals that are slightly outside our comfort zone. By doing so, we can foster growth and innovation, and actively work towards dismantling oppressive structures. This aligns with the decolonial principle of disrupting power imbalances and advocating for transformative change.

3. Defining specific actions: Goals are meaningless without actionable steps. To ensure progress and accountability, it is essential to define specific verbs or actions involved in achieving our goals. By breaking down our objectives into smaller, manageable tasks, we can maintain focus and track our progress. This aligns with the decolonial principle of praxis, where theory is put into action to create tangible and meaningful outcomes.

Taking inspiration from the Huberman Lab Podcast's goals toolkit, we can further enhance our goal-setting process. The toolkit provides valuable insights and actionable advice to optimize goal pursuit:

1. Visualisation techniques: Before starting our daily practice towards our goals, we can engage in positive visualisation if we are motivated or negative visualisation if we are lacking motivation. By visualizing the end result or the consequences of failure, we can tap into our intrinsic motivations and drive. This aligns with the decolonial principle of self-reflection and understanding our motivations within broader sociopolitical contexts.

2. Removing distractions: In today's digital age, distractions can hinder our progress towards achieving goals. Putting our phones on airplane mode or removing other potential distractions can help us maintain focus and stay committed. This aligns with the decolonial principle of prioritizing our own agency and reclaiming control over our time and attention.

3. Time chunking and energy alignment: Motivation can fluctuate throughout the day, and it is crucial to schedule our practice sessions aligned with moments of peak energy within our circadian rhythm. By time chunking and strategically planning our sessions, we can minimize the risk of experiencing a slump in motivation. This aligns with the decolonial principle of recognizing the influence of external factors, such as energy levels, on our overall well-being and productivity.

In conclusion, decolonising monitoring and evaluation practices and goal setting are intertwined concepts that can inform and strengthen each other. By incorporating a decolonial lens into our goal-setting process, we can challenge power imbalances, center marginalized voices, and work towards transformative change. To enhance our goal pursuit, we can draw insights from the goals toolkit, utilizing visualization techniques, removing distractions, and aligning our practice sessions with moments of peak energy. By adopting these strategies, we can create a more inclusive and impactful approach to setting and achieving goals.