Personal OKRs vs Reverse Journaling
Published .
OKRs tell you how you will know you got there. Reverse journaling tells you what to do next. Here is how they differ and how to run them together.
Use the free tool: the reverse planner
OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) pair one objective with a few key results you can measure, usually set for a quarter. Reverse journaling writes the goal as already done, names the obstacle and works back through milestones to one step for today. OKRs define the finish line in numbers. Reverse journaling builds the path back from it to this morning.
The short answer
Use OKRs when your problem is a vague goal: you are busy, but you cannot tell whether you are getting anywhere. Use reverse journaling when your problem is a clear goal that never moves. Most people with a quarter sized goal can use both: OKRs to define done, a backward plan to find this week's step.
Side by side
| Question | Personal OKRs | Reverse journaling |
|---|---|---|
| Starts from | An objective for the quarter | The goal written as done, with a date |
| Main output | Two to five key results you can measure | Milestones back to one step for today |
| Time horizon | Usually one quarter | The goal date back to today |
| Answers | How will I know I got there? | What should I do next? |
| Check in | Weekly or at the end of the quarter | Every night, one line |
| Main risk | Key results with no weekly step | A done statement with no measure |
What OKRs are
Andy Grove created OKRs at Intel. He built on Peter Drucker's Management by Objectives and added the idea of key results, which he taught to John Doerr. Doerr brought the method to Google and wrote about it in Measure What Matters. Grove's version ran quarterly rather than yearly (source). A key result is a number: not "get fitter" but "run 5 km three times a week."
What reverse journaling is
Reverse journaling starts at the finish line. You write the goal in the past tense, as if it already happened, name what could stop you, then step back through milestones until you reach something you can do in the next 45 minutes. Each night you log what you did. What is reverse journaling covers the method in full.
What the research says, carefully
- Specific goals beat "do your best." Edwin Locke and Gary Latham (2002) reviewed 35 years of goal setting research. They found that specific, difficult goals "consistently led to higher performance than urging people to do their best" (source). That is the strongest case for key results: they make a goal specific.
- When and where plans help. Peter Gollwitzer and Paschal Sheeran (2006) pooled 94 tests of if-then plans, which name when and where you will act. These plans had a medium to large effect on reaching goals (source). Key results do not say when or where. A daily step does. See implementation intentions.
- What no one has tested. We found no study that compares personal OKRs with reverse journaling head to head. The case for combining them is a reasoned one: one defines done, the other turns it into today's step.
Treat these findings as a guide, not a promise. This is a planning habit, not medical or financial advice.
When OKRs are the better tool
- Your goal is fuzzy, such as "grow the side business," and you need a way to tell if it is working.
- You share the goal with a partner, a team or a coach, and everyone needs the same scoreboard.
- You like a clear review point every quarter.
When reverse journaling is the better tool
- You know exactly what done looks like, but you do not know what to do this week.
- Your key results look good on paper and have not moved in a month.
- You want a nightly habit, not only a quarterly score.
How to use both
- Write the objective as done. Past tense, with a date: "On 31 March I finished the first draft of my novel."
- Turn key results into milestones. "80,000 words written" becomes the last milestone. Step back: 60,000 by early March, 40,000 by mid February, and so on.
- Name the obstacle. What is most likely to stop you this quarter? Write one if-then plan for it.
- Plan backward to this week. From the nearest milestone, pick three steps for the week, each small enough for about 45 minutes.
- Log it tonight. One line on your done list. At the end of the quarter, score each key result from the log, not from memory.
Example: one quarter, two ways
Marcus wants to switch from retail management to UX design.
- OKRs only: objective "Move into UX." Key results: finish a course, build 3 case studies, apply to 20 roles. Six weeks in, the course is half done and nothing else has started. The key results are right, but each week starts from scratch.
- Goal written as done: "On 31 March I had 3 case studies online and 20 applications sent."
- Backward plan for this week: pick the first case study topic, write the problem statement, sketch three screens.
- Daily step: 45 minutes before work, one step per session.
- Friday's log: "Topic picked. Problem statement written. Two of three sketches done."
The key results did not change. What changed is that each week now starts from the finish line instead of from a blank page.
Where this fits in Reverse Journaling
Reverse Journaling starts with the goal written as done, names the obstacle, plans back to today and ends each day with a done log. If you already set OKRs, keep them. Use your objective as the done statement and your key results as milestones. The 90 day plan lines up with an OKR quarter, and the weekly review is where you check key results and redo the backward plan.
Try it now
Pick one objective for this quarter. Write it as done, with a date. Write one key result as a number. Then ask what you need to have finished by Friday for that number to move, and do the first piece of it tomorrow morning.
Questions
What is the difference between OKRs and reverse journaling?
OKRs pair an objective with a few key results you can measure, usually set each quarter. Reverse journaling writes the goal as already done, names what could stop you and works back to one step for today. OKRs tell you how you will know you got there. Reverse journaling tells you what to do next.
Who invented OKRs?
Andy Grove created the method at Intel, building on Peter Drucker's Management by Objectives, and taught it to John Doerr. Doerr later brought it to Google and wrote about it in the book Measure What Matters.
Can I use OKRs for personal goals?
Yes. Keep it small: one objective and two or three key results for the quarter. Personal OKRs work best when each key result is a number you can check yourself, such as pages written or runs logged.
Why do my personal OKRs stall halfway through the quarter?
Key results say what finished looks like, but not what to do on a Tuesday. If no weekly step comes out of them, they sit untouched until the review. Plan backward from each key result to this week's step, then give that step one short session a day.
Can I use OKRs and reverse journaling together?
Yes. Use the objective as your done statement, use the key results as milestones, plan backward to this week, and log one line each night. At the end of the quarter, score the key results.