I am an Ohio State fan, however I am also a Big 10 fan. So I was rooting last night for Michigan to beat Louisville for the NCAA championship. Unfortunately they faded at the end and the outcome of a win was just short. So how do we benchmark the game? Individual players? Turnovers? Three pointers? Or the final score? As well as Michigan played and as much effort that the players displayed, the outcome was a loss.

In business and in investing how should we benchmark? Should it be the absolute outcome or is close enough acceptable? I have found that it depends on the situation and at times the efforts are often viewed as more important as the outcome. What I suggest is that what is important should be determined early in the process to allow an appropriate and reasonable outcome to occur. This allows that the result is not rationalized or that the pursuit isn’t judged without regards to the outcome.

Are your efforts then only a win or loss? Or can you set and benchmark appropriately to achieve your goals?