SMARTER Goals

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There is a chapter in my book about setting goals and I want to re-visit that topic today because although I posted it here many months ago it’s something that never losses its relevance. I have completely re-written this post because it’s so important, so no sneaking off because you’ve read the book and think you know what I’m going to say, because you don’t.

The SMART system is a well-known goal setting method and very popular in business. In my humble opinion it misses out two crucial aspetcs that are imperative in setting great personal goal and then actually being successful in achieving them.

A brief re-cap of what SMART goals are for those of you that aren’t familiar with them before I move on to explain the additions and why they are necessary.

SPECIFIC. So what is it that you want to achieve? Could another person read your goal and know what you were trying to do? If not, then it probably isn’t specific enough and it will not come to fruition. If you’re thinking “Read what? What goals?” Then you really do need to grab a pen, some paper and pay close attention.

MEASURABLE. Can you measure your goal? If you can’t how do you know where you are with it? If you want to make a certain amount of money, you can always look at your bank balance. If you want to get 5,000 visitors per day to your blog you can always look at your stats. If you have a goal of collecting 100 Coach handbags like it seems my wife has, then you can always go and count them. Having lots of money, plenty of visitors and a plethora of bags is not a measurable goal.

ACTION ORIENTED. You cannot have a goal that doesn’t require you to do anything, you have to get off your butt and actually do something. Any goal that doesn’t require action on your part is a wish, and good luck with those unless your name is Cinderella or Merlin or something along those lines.

REALISTIC. I want to say screw realism because that’s how I feel, but I can’t because this is a family blog. If you are a Chinese women that weighs 85lbs then I accept it is unrealistic to have a goal of playing for the US men’s basketball team. If however, you want to do something that at least one person of your gender and similar age (not even really sure about age, but I’ll let it slide this once) then it’s not unrealistic, so aim high, very high, and then a bit higher. Aaaand a bit higher please. Yeeeep, that should do it.

TIMEBOUND. Goals need deadlines like politicians need TV cameras. If you set a goal with no deadline you’ll be still wondering why you didn’t get it done 5 years from now because there will always be something more urgent to attend to.

There you have the traditional SMART goals outlined and now I’d like to add two more, to make them SMARTER. I’m so smug!

ECOLOGY. I am not talking about stopping nasty Faroe Islanders from clubbing baby seals or evil men in whaling ships jabbing and stabbing at cute and cuddly Orca. I mean that you need to take into account any potential negative effects that your goal will have on yourself and those around you.

If you have a goal to be the first man to beat a Grizzly Bear in hand-to-hand combat you may want to weigh up the odds, ask your family whether they think it’s a good idea and check your insurance policy. I’m not saying don’t do it, but be aware of what could happen if you fail, just as much as if you succeed. There are more prosaic examples such as encouraging your wife to lose 50lbs and then going nuts when she goes on a shopping spree for new clothes and treats herself to a younger better looking fella. Sorry if you are a female, but I think you know where I’m coming from. Just be aware, that’s all I’m saying.

REWARD. This is THE most important thing with setting goals and the thing that gets left out most often. This is what will get you out of bed at 5.00am when it’s snowing and the bed is snuggly warm. This is what will stop you eating that extra piece of pie or drinking one beer too many.

It’s the reward that you need to keep in front of you at ALL times so you know why you’re going that extra mile and other assorted clichés that I read off motivational posters like that. Always know you’re reward and you will increase your chances of success exponentially.

So what is it you want? What is the reward? What will you see, hear and feel when you get to your goal? You may have a goal of earning $1m but what is the real reward behind that? That money is useless in isolation, so what does it REALLY get you. Look past the obvious, drill down and keep asking, so what else does that get me, until you can go no further and that is the real reward, that is the thing that you write on your post it notes and plaster all over your house, office and even your body.

Now go and fill any gaps you may have on goals, dream and all that other great stuff by reading this post and then this one too.