As the year winds down and we all start to think about what next year could be like, a lot of people tend to get… ambitious. Its definitely not a problem to set challenging goals, so long as those goals are smart.
What are SMART Goals?
If you’re like me, you had the concept of SMART goals lectured at you probably 200 times, but usually in terms of your career. But I find SMART goals to be even more useful when applied to your actual life. If you’re not aware, a SMART goal is a goal that is Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely. Usually, a SMART goal is 1-2 sentences and is very easy to communicate to someone else. But these goals can be longer if they require multiple steps.
Why make a SMART goal?
Using the SMART template is a surefire way to make sure your goal is something you can actually achieve. It also makes you really think about what you’re going to do, how you’re going to do it, and most importantly, when you’re going to get it done.
If you’re already setting goals that you’re achieving without using SMART goals, then you’re already set! But if you have trouble following through or feel like you can’t quite bring your goals to reality, then SMART goals can help you set yourself up for success.
Getting Started
At the end of the day your goal should be something like “I’m going to lose 5 pounds by February 1st. I’m going to do that by cutting off snacks, going for daily walks, and eating a healthier breakfast.” Or it could be something along the lines of “I’m going to read a book a month. I’m going to do this by reading 30 pages a night and go to the bookstore on the first Thursday of every month.” Okay, that one might be a little too specific, but hopefully you get where I’m coming from.
To start, think about what you’re trying to achieve. Are you working on a project? Are you trying to lose weight? Maybe you want to build something? Whatever it is, get your end goal in mind and have a clear answer to the question “what are you trying to accomplish?”
Making your goal Specific
Vague goals are impossible to track and are nearly impossible to achieve. They often don’t have a clear start and end point, or if they do, they gloss over how you’ll actually get something down. Plenty of people want to “eat better” or “write a novel,” but actually doing that is much harder.
Making your goal specific means you’ll know what needs to get done, which obstacles you might face, and the steps that you’ll need to take to get something done.
So instead of just saying “I want to eat better this year,” you can say, “I plan to have a homecooked meal 6 nights a week.” Or “I will limit myself to eating fast food once a month.” And then these can be broken down even more, maybe you plan to start meal prepping or creating a menu.
To make sure your goal is specific, try asking yourself “how.” “I’m going to lose 10 pounds.” “How?” “I’m going to exercise and eat healthier.” How?” “I’m going to make a plan to go for a walk every day and I’m going to meal prep healthy dinners for the week.” “How?” “I’m going to have an accountability partner who will go on walks with me and I’m going to cook all my meals on Sunday nights so I don’t have to worry about it during the week.” Once you feel like you’re satisfied and you have the steps laid out, then your goal is specific enough!
Tip: When coming up with steps for your goals, ask yourself: is there any way I can involve my friends/family in this goal? You don’t want to burden someone else with your own quest for personal growth, but maybe your partner or kids can cook with you, or maybe you have a friend you’ve been dying to see more that would love to join you on afternoon walks!
Making your Goal Measurable
This is the easiest and the hardest step when it comes to making a goal. Measurable goals don’t just have a number attached (but that’s usually the easiest way to do it).
If you’re trying to finish a project, you might not know how to make it “measurable” but the best way to do it is to use deadlines and clear steps to make progress trackable. For example, if you want to write a novel, having a goal of 250 words per day is trackable. If you’re building a garden, well, that might be harder. You might need to lean more on a checklist, and track progress by saying I want half of my tasks done by January 14th.
Tip: Consider creating a to-do list or a place to chart your progress. It’s very motivating to have a visible way to see your progress!
Making your Goal Achievable
When I was doing research for this article many sites and videos used the same term, “reality check.” This step is to make sure what you’re looking to do is reasonable.
Ask yourself, has anyone else been able to do what you’re setting out to do? Are you giving yourself enough time to carry out your goal? You’ll need to come back to this one after you finish setting your goal.
I tend to have a lot of trouble telling people about my personal growth plans. The second I tell someone about it, I feel like all my motivation goes out the window, but an effective way to figure out if a goal is achievable is to tell someone about it. Just make sure it’s someone you trust can be honest with you while being motivating.
Tip: As an SDPEBA member you have access to Best Health, a service that’s dedicated to helping you achieve health and fitness goals. Through them you can get access to a health coach for free! This is a great person to run your goal by, they might even be able to help you brainstorm tips on how to make your goal even more achievable.
Making your Goal Relevant
Relevant means double checking that your goal makes sense and that your steps will help you achieve it. A good example of a goal that isn’t relevant is having the goal to lose weight and including something like taking protein powder as a step. Yes, protein powder is a great supplement to your workout, but most of those powders are designed to add mass.
Tip: A lot of financial goals fall apart at the relevancy stage. Sure, cutting back on your weekly latte saves money. But $6 a week isn’t going to make you a millionaire. A more relevant step might be creating a budget or doing weekly purchase audits.
Making your goal Timely
This is a step that seems simple (and kind of is), but is one that you really need to put thought into. Certain things just can’t happen in a week or two weeks, especially if you’re trying to achieve them and keep your fulltime job. But you also don’t want to give yourself too much leeway, because well, planning too far into the future is impossible!
The best way to create a deadline is to create smaller deadlines along the way. If you’re trying to build a garden maybe you want to the plans finished by January 7th, have gotten all the materials by January 14th, and have begun building by the 21st.
If you’re struggling too much with this step, then your goal might not be specific enough. Also, be sure you’re keeping relevancy in mind. If your goal is to build a garden by November, well, you’re going to miss planting season.
Tip: Make goals within goals! You can create SMART goals inside of a SMART goal. This is a great way to help make your deadlines reasonable.
Tools to Help!
SDPEBA offers several tools that might be useful when it comes to achieving your goals. As we mentioned, Best Health offers access to a health coach and a lot of other awesome tools that make living a healthier life easy (plus, you can win money just by participating). We also are partnered with Purchasing Power, which is a great budgeting tool that might help you keep your finances in check, even when you’re making big purchases. We also offer MetLife Legal, which is a fantastic way to get your Will and Trust done, but also might be useful if you’re looking to file a patent or any other complicated legal task.
Check out these articles to learn more about these awesome benefits!
https://www.sdpeba.org/news/city/rewards-for-living-healthy-with-best-health
https://www.sdpeba.org/news/city/everything-you-want-to-know-about-purchasing-power
https://www.sdpeba.org/news/city/everything-you-need-to-know-about-metlife-legal