Even the most successful businesses suffer from quarterly blues. At times, results are easy to justify – capital expenditures, seasonal market fluctuations or even act-of-nature catastrophes. Some companies may even spoil third quarter results to spare the triumphant fourth. Or, perhaps the dismal quarter is part of a wider business strategy that shareholders and analysts understand and support. At other times, the alarming red ink is a real wake-up call that leads to financial housekeeping, an executive sweep or a fiscal crisis plan.

Often, it's not the results that are at fault, but the planning method that generates them. A business is not entirely unlike an individual – when it makes short-term decisions that are not in alignment with the core values of the company the end result is nearly always disappointing.

Let's face it. Business leaders are under pressure to produce results now. They can easily bend to the will of investors and boards, who want quick returns and payoffs—quick indicators of success. All too often, a leader's long-term vision for company growth and achievement is sacrificed to the demands of quarterly reports or the profit and loss statement. And that sacrifice leads to bad decisions that compromise the underpinning values of the organization and unsurprisingly, can shipwreck quarterly earnings and maroon long-term gains.

So how does a business leader set the right goals?

According to veteran entrepreneur Peter H. Thomas, you — and your company — should dance your way to success through mutual goals that are adopted step by step and always in alignment with your values. In Thomas' blueprint for success, he suggests the RUMBA, a goal-setting process that determines worthwhile objectives in these terms:

Realistic

Understandable

Meaningful & Measurable

Believable; and,

Agreed upon.

To stage the process, and bring it into the company focus and vision, business leaders focus on the following questions:

1. Are our goals realistic? Are they grounded in clear ideas of what we want and what's required to achieve them?

2. Are we willing to take risks, and if so, what's our risk quotient?

3. Are the goals understandable? Are the objectives clearly defined?

4. Are the goals personally meaningful to our company and its stakeholders? Are they measurable with objective indicators?

5. Do we believe wholeheartedly in the short-term objectives and the long-term goal we expect to achieve?

6. Are the goals and objectives agreed upon by the people who have stake in our company?

Even then, while the focus and balance needed to be a leader may give a company stability and trajectory, company goals that don't align with company values will always be a threat to future growth.

As Plato said in the text Alcibiades, "Know Thyself." As a business leader, you're charged with the task of holding a vision for the company, and maintaining the appropriate perspective to achieve it. Don't let unaligned interests cloud your sight. A well-focused leader who sets goals using criteria consistent with personal and corporate values will achieve over the long haul.

Quarterly results don't have to be dreaded, or be a catalyst for financial housekeeping ... or maybe the executive sweep. When goals are in step with stakeholder expectations and aligned with core values, it's all "easy ... a piece of cake," says Thomas.

Moreover, dancing with a goal-setting strategy — aligning it on a values-driven course — offers benefits beyond the achievement of the goals themselves. These methods combined are a surefire way to motivate and inspire others, develop clarity and will boost the energy and confidence needed among colleagues and customers to reach even the tallest company peak.