Using ‘S.M.A.R.T’ Goals to Set Yourself Up For Success
Increase your chances of completing your goals with this system
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Many of us have areas that we want to improve on and may set different goals for ourselves such as New Year’s Resolutions or simply goals throughout the year. But simply setting a goal is very different from achieving it.
Sometimes, it can be hard to stick to a new goal and achieve what you set out to. Sometimes, your goal is so vague that it is hard to know if and when you’ve achieved it. It can be just plain hard. However, there has been an immense amount of research into how to set yourself up for success when setting and achieving goals.
Proven Systems
Let’s dive into one proven system that I love and use it to set some goals today. In a previous article, I set some June Resolutions for myself and invited others to do the same as it’s a good halfway point to check in on any New Year’s
Resolutions or set new ones, especially with everything slowly opening back up. In this article, we will learn about the SMART system and see some examples of SMART goals in both personal and professional settings to help you (re)write your own.
The SMART method was first officially written down by George T. Doran in his paper “There’s a S.M.A.R.T. Way to Write Management’s Goals and Objectives”. Since then, it has been used to help people around the world achieve their professional and personal goals. So what is the S.M.A.R.T. Way? According to Project Smart,
Doran’s original definition tied in five criteria:
Specific: target a specific area for improvement.
Measurable: quantify, or at least suggest, an indicator of progress.
Assignable: specify who will do it.
Realistic: state what results can realistically be achieved given available resources.
Time-related: specify when the result can be achieved.
*Note: many versions of the SMART system now list A as “Attainable” or “Achievable” instead of “Assignable”.*
Using the SMART method requires you to analyze and reflect on your goals from multiple angles which…
