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Unrealistic targets are often stemming from a place of "wanting to do good" however they can be avoided by considering things like; project budget, staffing, baseline of data in the area the project is occurring, and better defined indicators

To the uninitiated, sales might appear like an easy career option. Firstly, there’s the client schmoozing, then there’s attendance at swanky events and to top it all off, salespeople all earn huge amounts of money, right? Not quite.

Anyone that has ever worked in a sales environment will know how much of a misperception this is and will be happy to share just how difficult the sales rep’s role really is. The commonly-used performance-based pay structure (low base pay combined with ‘incentivizing’ commission opportunities) means that reps have little choice but to work hard to meet their targets or face a lean month. But, what happens when targets seem unachievable? How should sales reps handle unrealistic sales targets?

1. Don’t panic

As humans, our instinctive reaction to anything that threatens our job security or earning potential is to worry about it. Not hitting your target for a month can be considered an indication of inadequacy. However, the first step to managing the situation is not to panic. You’ve identified an issue you need to resolve; now, there are several steps you can take to improve it.

2. Adjust your approach

Depending on what and how you sell, fine-tune your approach. If you are in telesales involving lots of cold calls, monitor what time of the day and which day of the week the most fruitful calls occur. Make your calls in accordance with this information, and see your numbers start to stack up.

If you are in direct sales, invest in leveraging all channels including social media to build in thorough account information. My personal favorite is subscribing for the prospect company’s press releases and announcements–you will be surprised by the actionable intelligence you get out of this.

Lastly, if you are indirect or channel-driven sales, build a business case for additional budget and invest in targeted demand generation programs with your channel.

3. Assess your working practices

Is the way that you work hindering your chances of meeting targets? Are you using all your social selling tools? Are there any changes you could make in your processes that would increase your productivity? Can you, for example, be more organized regarding having a clear agenda and updated deck for your appointments? Or would working flexibly help you achieve more–it makes sense if you’re a morning person, for example, to start earlier. Take a look at some productivity improvement methods; they could make all the difference.

4. Speak up

If you’ve taken a hard look at your processes, worked to optimize your timing, and your targets really are unattainable, then it’s time to speak to your manager. Before you do so, it’s a good idea to put a business case together to demonstrate what you think is causing the problem–whether it’s the head office’s misguided notion that the targets will motivate staff or just a lack of business opportunity in your patch. Emphasize the steps you’ve taken to turn this issue around and ask for them to reconsider the goals. You may well find that fellow reps are having the same problems but haven’t spoken up.

Regarding the setting of unrealistic targets, it really exposed me to similar situations in the past where we set out unrealistic targets due to the energy level without appropriate data and by the time we got to execution, we were totally overwhelmed and it got us back to the drawing table and finally we were able to reset and execute.

Unrealistic targets are usually based on over ambitious assumptions.

unrealistic target; can cause project not achieve/met, what is planned to achieve or failure. and if this happen is must the project to have review meeting with the stakeholders to re-plan. and mostly what cause this happen are;
1- lack of careful planning
2-inaccurate estimation whether the target beneficiary or the cost and
3- other resource and time required
4- ineffective communication between all the participants involved in the target.

Setting unrealistic targets will definitely lead the whole team to vague directions. For setting realistic targets, it is important to have more consultation with experts, collect data and critically estimate future events.

What is unrealistic targets? Unrealistic targets are tardet that you are not achieved.

Great module

Good to hear that targets are flexible depending on circumstances. In-deed staffs need training on M&E so they understand that its not M&E department role

I like that i have now learned how to set realistic targets using various soures

I like that i have now learned how to set realistic targets

Unrealistic targets are bad not only for the organization but also for the project and Human Resources. Unrealistic targets may lead to poor outcomes, burnout and a loss of donor support.
Organizations can guard against setting unrealistic targets by having a solid monitoring and evaluation plan, a strong theory of change, doing baseline research, looking up historical trends and doing proper budgeting. The beauty is, targets are not set in stone and thus can be adjusted .

hello everyone

please how do i differentiate an unrealistic target from an ambitious target?

Unrealistic targets are either overly ambitious or do not take into account the project's historical, actual, and potential.

Data management is the practice of collecting, keeping, and using data securely, efficiently, and cost-effectively.

Unrealistic target can be discouraging and disappointing to both you, worker and your donors, so when target will not be achievable is better adjusting it

Target Areas

Any aspiration that isn't reasonable, doable, or attainable qualifies as an unrealistic objective. Unrealistic goals cause you to burn out or become bored, which leads to an early resignation. Verify that each phase of your plan is doable to spot any unrealistic objectives. Simplify your goals to quit setting impossible ones.

Any aspiration that isn't reasonable, doable, or attainable qualifies as an unrealistic objective. Unrealistic goals cause you to burn out or become bored, which leads to an early resignation. Verify that each phase of your plan is doable to spot any unrealistic objectives. Simplify your goals to quit setting impossible ones.

Un projet est toujours ajustable si nécessaire.

Unrealistic targets are often stemming from a place of "wanting to do good" however they can be avoided by considering things like; project budget, staffing, baseline of data in the area the project is occurring, and better defined indicators

to setting target in you project help well to achieve your main goals.

Increasing customer acquisition by 100 percent in a month . In rare cases will customer acquisition meet 100 percent in a month period,it takes time

Unrealistic targets can lead to mistake and poor quality outcome . A target first of all state the level that your project will meet by a certain date and a target is unrealistic when it does not tell your donor how much work you are planning on doing , if you set your target too low your donors may be reluctant to give you the money .

The course has been very helpful in setting realistic and ambitious targets. As someone transitioning to the development sector from the private sector, I have observed several limitations in setting realistic but ambitious targets. The course material has provided a good framework to assess if targets are well set.

These are targets set but they are had to attain for instance you may have a target for eliminating poverty where you want all the people in the community to be at 100% above the poverty line not knowing that you will have people who may not want to work. So when setting targets they should be realistic to achieve

Unrealistic targets can lead to mistakes and poor quality outcomes, since the team and beneficiaries may be forced to rush work, cut corners and not take proper care of what is being done. therefore for any project to be successfully, one has to select targets that are realistic and objective in nature so as to achieve better outcomes.

if the project document giving to me in one of its indicator has a baseline of 0, does that means that any outcome provided by the indicator will be acceptable?

it is very important to make realistic targets as this will enable positive outcome in your project

i have learnt about choosing indicators they must be objective, practical, disaggregated, direct, adequate, useful for management

Unrealistic Targets, mean that they do not recognize the truth about a situation, especially about the difficulties involved in the project goals they want to achieve.

Unrealistic targets can cause disappointments to you, your colleagues and even the donors.

Unrealistic targets can be defined as being too ambitious. That is, setting targets that are unattainable when one is being too optimistic.

Unrealistic targets can be defined as setting targets that are unattainable to reach. That is, being too ambitious and optimistic.

Unrealistic targets can be defined as setting targets that are unattainable to reach. That is, being too ambitious and optimistic.

Is it possible that what we thought were realistic targets become unreastic in the course of project implementation?

Looking at an agribusiness one of the unrealistic targets would fall under assuming that the community will approval it, and do away with nomadic nature of life style , when introducing a new type to lifestyle to different communities its of essence that the project should start small by incorporating few members of the community, and with time expound further depending on how the community responds to the idea. It would be totally wrong to believe that a pastrolist community will shun off from its nomadic nature and fully embrace farming. Such a scenario will require lots of patience and capacity building

Looking at an agribusiness one of the unrealistic targets would fall under assuming that the community will approval it, and do away with nomadic nature of life style , when introducing a new type to lifestyle to different communities its of essence that the project should start small by incorporating few members of the community, and with time expound further depending on how the community responds to the idea. It would be totally wrong to believe that a pastrolist community will shun off from its nomadic nature and fully embrace farming. Such a scenario will require lots of patience and capacity building

To what extent can goals be set unilaterally?
The unilateral setting of objectives by the employer must fulfill strict conditions. Indeed, the employer is obliged to set objectives, called "SMART", specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound.

How to fulfill the conditions of a unilateral setting of objectives by the company? What role does the manager play in the communication and pedagogy necessary for fixing them?

Usually, project's members could contribute with outstanding ideas and purposes around the project, and sometimes when defining "targets", those ideas could be far away from project's capabilities, and at the beginning those issues cannot be seen or oversight appropriately, so I think it's necessary a bit of additional procedures to review again those targets and if the case, reformulate them, but without transforming this process in an spiral without and end.

Got to learn that there are different ways we can use when setting up targets to ensure that we minimise the posibility of setting unrealistic targets. Good to that we can readjust our targets during the implementation of the project.


A Target is said to be unrealistic when for instance a project planned to be implemented in two years is attempted in six months.

Also, a Target is said to be unrealistic when the budgeted amount for a project is below the target. For example, a Target has been set to provide 70,000 mosquito nets and the amount released can only acquire 30,000 mosquito nets.

Got to learn that there are different ways we can use when setting up targets to ensure that we minimise the posibility of setting unrealistic targets. Good to that we can readjust our targets during the implementation of the project.

Setting Target is Avery crucial steps in M and E and project planning , Target should be realistic

setting an unrealistic target is a common scenario especially when the planner doesn't know how much fund he is going to receive,in which case he needs to adjust his target

unrealistic targets will demoralize the project team when they monitor the changes they are bringing and the changes they are planning to bring

so in M&E the targets should be ambitious but achievable

Unrealistic Targets are a challenging part of a project. Anyone who’s spent any time in the construction industry at any level understands there are a lot of moving parts that need to mesh together perfectly in order for the project to succeed. Architecture, design, supply, and assembly all need to be perfectly balanced. And if one thing goes awry, it can throw off the entire schedule.

One thing that is crucial for project success is something that is also often overlooked: TARGETS setting.
It is essential to set realistic targets in a project.

There are a number of factors that lead to setting unrealistic targets:

1. Lack of careful planning.
   Having a precise plan with the clear requirements and expectations of all the project participants is a must. If they get down to business right away and skip detailed planning or consider it as a formality, they will probably face difficulties at the very beginning because of mismatching expectations.

2. Inaccurate estimation of costs.
   Estimation is a critical part in project planning, it involves a quantitative specification of project costs, required resources and time. Effective estimation is based on setting clear requirements with the team, clients and stakeholders. Underestimation of the resources required for project implementation leads to one side promising the outcomes that cannot be delivered. Overestimation of the required resources is also possible, in this case the clients may refuse to collaborate with the company and look for more favorable terms. The best alternative here is to determine a certain buffer (e.g. 450-470 m/hr instead of just 450) for the allocated resources to ensure you won’t have any issues later.

One more thing that adds to inaccurate estimation of the project is uncertainty concerning the project scope, work amount, unexpected internal or external events. Lack of necessary information or clarity on these points at the stage of estimation will result in setting unrealistic expectations.

3. Kinds of resources available.

4. Time required : Those deadlines aren’t just suggestions. Failing to manage time properly can create massive issues both for project team members and with the clients who are waiting for their jobs to be finished.

5. Ineffective communication between all the participants(team members, beneficiaries,partners and donors) involved in the project.
   One of the challenging aspects of project in monitoring and Evaluation is setting and then managing targets of both clients and stakeholders. As a rule, everyone comes into a project with some kind of expectations. However, a number of factors often lead to the situation when one side is left expecting more than the other side can offer.
   Poor communication leads to a number of difficulties and misunderstandings. For example, when a project team members do not communicate to stakeholders on time, they are not aware of what has already been done and what requires more time. The same can be said about problems arising during the team’s working on the project. So, it’s not a good idea to leave stakeholders expecting that everything goes well when it actually doesn’t. Lack of proper communication can cause unnecessary delays.
   Lack of effective and timely communication with clients may lead to their disorientation concerning the project activities and therefore setting unrealistic targets.

6. Desire to please clients/stakeholders.
   It sometimes happens that the fear of losing clients or stakeholders’ credit forces project team members to agree on some requirements without thorough consideration. In turn, this leads to underestimation of the available resources, so there is a discrepancy between one side’s expectations and what another side can actually deliver. In such a situation, it’s rather difficult to admit that something has gone wrong, and the problems begin to snowball. If these matters are not negotiated by all participants of the project, thorough estimation of the available resources isn’t done, and clear realistic targets aren’t set, the project impact in all likelihood will fail.

Note that these reasons are closely interrelated and influence one another, so in the process of dealing with expectations, it’s important to take all of them into account.

Overcoming Unrealistic Targets may be rather difficult, but there are some steps that can be taken to provide success:
1.Planning with detailed expectations.
2.Systemic work with the team to clarify everyone’s roles and responsibilities.

3. Focus on reaching the project milestones to demonstrate progress, which motivates the team and makes things clear.
4. Providing effective communication between all the parties involved in the project.

Unrealistic Targets are a challenging part of a project. Anyone who’s spent any time in the construction industry at any level understands there are a lot of moving parts that need to mesh together perfectly in order for the project to succeed. Architecture, design, supply, and assembly all need to be perfectly balanced. And if one thing goes awry, it can throw off the entire schedule.

One thing that is crucial for project success is something that is also often overlooked: TARGETS setting.
It is essential to set realistic targets in a project.

There are a number of factors that lead to setting unrealistic targets:

1. Lack of careful planning.
   Having a precise plan with the clear requirements and expectations of all the project participants is a must. If they get down to business right away and skip detailed planning or consider it as a formality, they will probably face difficulties at the very beginning because of mismatching expectations.

2. Inaccurate estimation of costs.
   Estimation is a critical part in project planning, it involves a quantitative specification of project costs, required resources and time. Effective estimation is based on setting clear requirements with the team, clients and stakeholders. Underestimation of the resources required for project implementation leads to one side promising the outcomes that cannot be delivered. Overestimation of the required resources is also possible, in this case the clients may refuse to collaborate with the company and look for more favorable terms. The best alternative here is to determine a certain buffer (e.g. 450-470 m/hr instead of just 450) for the allocated resources to ensure you won’t have any issues later.

One more thing that adds to inaccurate estimation of the project is uncertainty concerning the project scope, work amount, unexpected internal or external events. Lack of necessary information or clarity on these points at the stage of estimation will result in setting unrealistic expectations.

3. Kinds of resources available.

4. Time required : Those deadlines aren’t just suggestions. Failing to manage time properly can create massive issues both for project team members and with the clients who are waiting for their jobs to be finished.

5. Ineffective communication between all the participants(team members, beneficiaries,partners and donors) involved in the project.
   One of the challenging aspects of project in monitoring and Evaluation is setting and then managing targets of both clients and stakeholders. As a rule, everyone comes into a project with some kind of expectations. However, a number of factors often lead to the situation when one side is left expecting more than the other side can offer.
   Poor communication leads to a number of difficulties and misunderstandings. For example, when a project team members do not communicate to stakeholders on time, they are not aware of what has already been done and what requires more time. The same can be said about problems arising during the team’s working on the project. So, it’s not a good idea to leave stakeholders expecting that everything goes well when it actually doesn’t. Lack of proper communication can cause unnecessary delays.
   Lack of effective and timely communication with clients may lead to their disorientation concerning the project activities and therefore setting unrealistic targets.

6. Desire to please clients/stakeholders.
   It sometimes happens that the fear of losing clients or stakeholders’ credit forces project team members to agree on some requirements without thorough consideration. In turn, this leads to underestimation of the available resources, so there is a discrepancy between one side’s expectations and what another side can actually deliver. In such a situation, it’s rather difficult to admit that something has gone wrong, and the problems begin to snowball. If these matters are not negotiated by all participants of the project, thorough estimation of the available resources isn’t done, and clear realistic targets aren’t set, the project impact in all likelihood will fail.

Note that these reasons are closely interrelated and influence one another, so in the process of dealing with expectations, it’s important to take all of them into account.

Overcoming Unrealistic Targets may be rather difficult, but there are some steps that can be taken to provide success:
1.Planning with detailed expectations.
2.Systemic work with the team to clarify everyone’s roles and responsibilities.

3. Focus on reaching the project milestones to demonstrate progress, which motivates the team and makes things clear.
4. Providing effective communication between all the parties involved in the project.

es ce qu'il faudrait dire ce que c'est qu'un objectif irréalistes ou alors dire comme gérer s'il est possible ce type d'objectif?
Mais je pense que d'après le cour ce style d'objectif ne devrait pas être pris en compte sauf si c'est un défit ou un challenge à réaliser la dans ce cas on pourrait peut-être le considérer comme un objectif ambitieux

It is important to set realistic targets, so that you create disappointment and frustration among the team and with the client.

Targets are realistic goals you want to reach within a stipulated period of time.when you say someone is is being unrealistic you mean that the person do not recognize truth about a certain situation especially about the difficulties involved in something they want to achieve. They cannot be achieved within a short period of time because they are often too over ambitious,so as unrealistic target that can be met or achieved within a short period of time.
By practicing, setting and enforcing boundaries,considering your supervisor's intention , soliciting help from your co- workers to reach goal and creating a workflow timeline that can help you succeed .All these mentioned can help deal with unrealistic target.

Unrealistic targets depend on analysis of causes

Targets are realistic goals you want to reach within a stipulated period of time.when you say someone is is being unrealistic you mean that the person do not recognize truth about a certain situation especially about the difficulties involved in something they want to achieve. They cannot be achieved within a short period of time because they are often too over ambitious,so as unrealistic target that can be met or achieved within a short period of time.
By practicing, setting and enforcing boundaries,considering your supervisor's intention , soliciting help from your co- workers to reach goal and creating a workflow timeline that can help you succeed .All these mentioned can help deal with unrealistic target.

Unrealistic targets are usually set without baseline data or without any research conducted.
These such targets with workload also increases since the staff have to work hard to achieve those targets

Unrealistic targets are usually set without baseline data or without any research conducted.
These such targets with workload also increases since the staff have to work hard to achieve those targets

An unrealistic Targets is any goal that isn't attainable, practical, or doable. When you set unrealistic targets, you get bored or burnt out and you quit early. To recognize unrealistic Targets, check that each step of your plan is achievable. To stop setting unrealistic Targets, make your targets simpler and keep it achievable.

When the targets are on their own and not based on the respective goals and activity's indicators,then the quantified goals or objective that a programme plans to achieve by a certain date will not be met.

targets should be realistic, so to help the team be motivated to achieving specific results on time

targets should be realistic, so to help the team be motivated to achieving specific results on time

targets should be realistic for loyalty

targets should be realistic, so to help the team be motivated to achieving specific results on time

Unrealistic targets impacts self-esteem, motivation, and productivity, which eventually damage bottom-line.

Targets has to be ambitious and challenging for the organization to inspire and make the team work harder to achieve the targets. However, if the organization is not careful, the targets set can be unrealistic at times which will disappoint the team and the stakeholders involved. In order to avoid setting unrealistic targets, the organization and the team must collect adequate information and data before the targets are actually set. As mentioned in the course, it would be quite difficult to get all the information and data, but the organization should mindful of it.
When an organization tends to overlook at the data/information and resource that they have in hand, there are high chances of setting unrealistic targets.

I agree with what you are saying about unrealistic target setting. However, the kind of targets that we set should also be defined and guided by the amount of resources (Money, time and human resources) that we have in our hand. For instance, if we have adequate resources, I bet everyone would definitely eye for ambitious target for their project.

This module was very informative. For all of us whose focus is the implementation of projects, it should be important to know how to set goals in the right way. Therefore, a very good analysis of all data, resources, activities, time frame and the like should be performed.

Unrealistic targets impacts self-esteem, motivation, and productivity, which eventually damage bottom-line.

There are a variety of root causes that can lead to leaders to set unrealistic expectations. In any case, the way to deal with it is to find the root cause and adapt to the issue. It may be caused by a perception that Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) or project managers are overly conservative in their estimates, since it is easy to underestimate the time and effort needed to complete work when removed from the process. Further, leaders may believe that the project managers or SMEs are inexperienced or are improperly managing the project. Lastly, leaders are more likely to get involved when they lack knowledge of the intricacies of the project.

I am happy that I now know the guidelines for setting realistic targets. There's a very thin line between realistic and unrealistic targets. So from this course I have realized that baselines, historical trends and other sources of data such as expert opinion, research findings or previous projects as well as project budgets come in handy to ensure we don't set unrealistic targets. I have also known that it is wrong to set targets based on our feelings but instead we ought to utilize data from reliable source.

Over ambitious targets.

unrealistic targets may be hard to achieve because they might not be based on any data or facts. they might have come into existence through biases

We adjust our targets when they become unrealistic

The SPV is in charge of doing the self-evaluation and benchmarking about replicability and innovation. It is recommended to have internal brainstorming with all the components managers to decide the level of replicability and innovation of the project. The component manager could be in charge of the benchmark as they know better than anyone the detailed activities.

The SPV is in charge of doing the self-evaluation and benchmarking about replicability and innovation. It is recommended to have internal brainstorming with all the components managers to decide the level of replicability and innovation of the project. The component manager could be in charge of the benchmark as they know better than anyone the detailed activities.

Over ambitious targets.

Over ambitious targets.

Targets should be ambitious yet realistic. Unrealistic targets may be difficult or impossible to reach resulting in failure of the project and disappointment for those involved. It can also undermine the project's credibility and donors may refuse to continue funding.

By trying to appear too nice for funders or by failing to take factors like the availability of resources and their own capacities into consideration, one can easily fall into the trap of setting unrealistic targets.

Can someone explain about unrealistic targets in details?

I feel like organizations really need to be careful how they set their targets. Being over ambitious leads to blame game, mostly when organizations set unrealistic goals and employees fail to achieve the goals, it is the employees who are often put under unnecessary pressure and blamed for not achieving the targets.

Targets should be ambitious yet realistic. Unrealistic targets may be difficult or impossible to reach resulting in failure of the project and disappointment for those involved. It can also undermine the project's credibility and donors may refuse to continue funding.

Realistic targets are SMART, thus Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound, while the unrealistic targets are opposite, thus are not set according to the organization objective or objectives.

As for me, unrealistic targets are not base on baseline and other essential data. Just setting on assumptions and biases and opinions.

As for me, unrealistic targets are not base on baseline and other essential data. Just setting on assumptions and biases and opinions.

I think my mind, unrealistic targets are not base on baseline, trand and other essential data, just setting on the assumptions, opinions and biases of people.

If we accidently set unrealistic targets in our logframe, we will never ever get our goal.

La cible irréaliste est celle qui n'est bien connu et non objective.

La cible irréaliste est celle qui n'est bien connu et non objective.

If the project is new, can the target describe during the project implementation? What is the risk the project might face if we do so?

setting targets is very important and has to be one of the fields which gets attention when dealt with

setting targets is very important and has to be one of the fields which gets attention when dealt with

setting targets is very important and has to be one of the fields which gets attention when dealt with

enough data analysis on the subject under investigation may lead to realist targets being set

this is very true hence the need for literature review

very correct and this may be achieved through consulting data from reliable sources as well as consulting expert on the subject under investigation

to set unrealistic targets is not good for organization why because it will make employee work hard for achieving that difficult task which will lead to poor result as donor will be disappointed for the result unless you 'would do what you are capable of but gives good result.

Unrealistic targets are those targets that cannot be achieved. Unrealistic targets can be a result of insufficient project budget, lack of enough information when coming up with targets and setting targets emotionally rather than using evidence. Unrealistic targets may lead to underachievement which will lead to donor, team and beneficiary frustration.

Unrealistic targets can drain and frustrate a project in the long run. I remember a project I worked on with some of my friends and how in the course of time we realized we were just going to shoot ourselves in the leg. We had to hold a meeting and readjusted out target allowing for more time to plan, collaborate and implement.

I'm thankful for this course. So far, I have learnt about various data collection tools, which is appropriate when trying to measure an indicator, etc.
I believe this is an important aspect of M&E because I know as a communicator that no information is complete without feedback and that's what data collection tools helps us to achieve.