Goals can be important motivators for many people, but they must smart goals to be truly effective. Back in my Sun Microsystems days, we took a bunch of courses along the way, one of which revolved around defining those smart goals. What's a smart goal? It must be:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Actionable
- Realistic
- Time-bound
There are various other versions of the SMART definition, but they are all fairly similar. Differences arise with the focus, such as business management, project management, personal goals, etc.
In addition to being SMART, goals should be a bit of a stretch or a challenge without being so far out of reach you have about a 2% chance of attaining it. Those odds are discouraging for just about everyone. Perhaps a 2% chance of attainment should be called a dream instead of a goal. At the opposite end of the the spectrum, reaching a low-hanging fruit type of goal isn't much of a challenge and doesn't hold much meaning. For me, to set a goal of just finishing a half-marathon isn't much of a challenge: I've done 6 of them already.
Here's an example of a poor goal: I want to run faster.
It's not specific or time-bound, but it is actionable, realistic, and measurable although running even 1 second per mile faster counts as "faster" and it's not much of a stretch unless you happen to be trying to set the mile world record.]
Here's a SMART goal: I want to run the Evansville YMCA 5k on August 2nd in 28 minutes.
It's very specific [28 minute 5k]. It can be measured [stopwatch]. It's actionable [I can take specific steps to improve my speed]. It's realistic [I think :-)]. It has an end date [August 2nd].
Another poor goal: I need to lose weight. [not specific or time bound]
And another poor goal: I want to lost 10 pounds by next weekend. [not specific enough or realistic]
Better: I want to lose 10 pounds by September 30th. [still not specific enough]
SMART: I want to lose 10 pounds of fat by September 30th.
It's specific [10 pounds of fat ... don't want to lose 10 pounds of muscle!]. It's measurable [body-fat scale]. It's actionable [I can define steps to take, such as do cardio for an hour 5 times a week, eat at least 9 servings or fruits and vegetables, and reduce or eliminate junk food]. It's realistic [less than a pound a week]. It's time-bound [September 30th].
Notice that I start my goals with "I want" versus "I need." Perhaps, I should extend it to "I want and I will." Lots of people saying "I need to lose weight" or "I need to eat better" or "I need to get more exercise." Those statements send the message that they don't really WANT to do those things. So, start you goals with a statement of desire ("I want") and intent ("I will"). Repeat them to yourself in the mirror every morning while you're brushing your teeth. Keep a record so you can track your progress. If you need more reward that the satisfaction of reaching a challenging goal, then tack the definition of the reward onto your goal. I really want a pair of Keen Newport H2 sandals, so I might just add that as a reward for reaching one or two or my goals.
Sometimes circumstances arise that interfere with our goal. Rather than just giving up on the goal, redefine it. For example, let's say next week I get a serious ankle sprang and can't run on it for two weeks. That's going to make reaching my 28 minute 5k goal by August 2nd pretty unrealistic, so I'll need to adjust my goal in one of two ways: 1) change the date to another 5k race a few weeks later, or 2) change the time from 28 minutes to 30.5 minutes.
Of course, you can set smart goals until you're blue in the face, and that's a very important step to take [well, not the turning blue part!]. Following the setting of the goals comes the strategy and tactics and commitment to achieve those goals. Call it will-power, self-discipline, passion, desire, whatever. More on that topic later on.
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