SMART Goal Setting: A Surefire Way To Achieve Your Goals.

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Internationally renowned business philosopher Jim Rohn says, “We want to set the goals that our heart conceives, that our mind believes and that our bodies will carry out.” We are intelligent beings and as intelligent beings we need to have SMART goals. The acronym S.M.A.R.T. outlines the set of criteria that your goal must follow in order for it to be a well-focused and achievable goal. That set of criteria is:

Specific: Do you know exactly what you want to accomplish with all the details?

Measurable: Are you able to assess your progress?

Attainable: Is your goal within your reach given your current situation?

Relevant: Is your goal relevant towards your purpose in life?

Time-Sensitive: What is the deadline for completing your goal?

Create Specific Goals

Jack Canfield in his book, The Success Principles, states that “Vague goals produce vague results.” There is no place in your life for vague goals. Your subconscious mind will fulfill whatever it focuses on and if your goals are ambiguous or incomplete, then you will achieve results that are also ambiguous or incomplete. You want to make your goal as detailed as possible in order to achieve the specific results that you desire. A specific goal is one that is clearly defined in such a way that anyone could come by and understand what you intend to accomplish. Your goal should contain a detailed description of what you want to accomplish; when you want to accomplish it by; and the action(s) you will take to accomplish it.

Bad example: “I want to write a book.”

Good example: “I want to write a book on time management that is at least 200 pages in length and have it done by December 16th. I’ll commit myself to writing at least 2 pages every workday until I reach completion.”

Create Measurable Goals

Always set goals that are measurable in some way. You need to establish a measuring stick for assessing the progress towards your goals because if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it. A good measurable goal will be one where anyone can come up to you at the deadline and, by viewing the results, determine whether or not you have completed your goal. You also want to be able to see the progressive changes that you make on your goal so that you can judge whether or not you are reaching the completion of your goal. Select a standard unit of measurement that will enable you to see exactly how far you have come from the start of your goal and how far away from the completion of the goal you are.

Bad example: “I want to be rich.”

Good example: “I want to generate $100,000 in passive income within 5 years from this date.”

Create Attainable Goals

Having high goals that stretch you is important, but you need to also need to create goals that are realistic for your situation and skill level. Many people unfortunately set their goals and dreams so high that they are just not very realistic and, as a result, they never seem to reach their dreams in life. Creating goals that are not attainable is very disempowering and will only serve to demotivate you in life. Remember to set high goals, but be realistic about your goals. On the same note, goals that are too easily accomplished do not stretch you or make you grow as a person because they are not challenging enough. You will want to find that right mix of goal that is challenging, but not extreme.

Bad example: “I want to become a millionaire in 2 months.”

Good example: “I want to become a millionaire within 10 years by starting my own personal development company and doing seminars all over the world and by creating a line of passive income products.”

Create Relevant Goals

Having goals is great, but what is the underlying purpose for those goals? You want to create goals that are in-line with your personal mission statement or your purpose in life. Relevant goals ensure that you are dedicating your effort towards goals that are focused towards who you are as a person. It is similar to a college curriculum that focuses on specific courses for each major. All of us should create a mission statement for ourselves which is basically our purpose in life and all of our goals should spawn from that mission statement. Goals are just a means of achieving that mission in life. A goal can be very evil in nature and still abide by all the other criteria, but relevancy is the ethical check on that goal to make sure that this particular goal fits within your purpose in life.

Bad example: “Within one year, I want to become a warlord and have many loyal soldiers who will commit acts of terrorism on my behalf.”

Good example: “By the end of the year, I want to build a philanthropic foundation that helps feed the homeless.”

Create Time-Sensitive Goals

Every goal that you create must be time-sensitive in nature. Not having a time element attached to your goal breeds procrastination. We would simply be motivated to put the goal off for a later time and never get around to it. Goals must have definite starting points and ending points and milestones along the way.

Bad example: “I am going to do my homework.”

Good example: “I am going to finish my homework by 8pm tonight and I’ll achieve this deadline by spending one hour on each subject.”

By spending some time towards making sure that your goals fit the SMART criteria, you will ensure your success.

Author's Bio
For over 10 years, Tristan has inspired, motivated, and brought success to the lives of the people he’s touched. Tristan has competed athletically against Olympians as a gymnast, rescued and saved numerous lives as a police officer, became a successful entrepreneur and highly sought-after Personal Development Consultant, and became internationally recognized as an expert in the field of Personal Development and human potential. Tristan is the founder of the Synergy Institute, a San Diego based Personal Development Firm. His philosophy of passionate living and helping others fulfill their dreams has continually been the driving force that has placed him well above the industry standard. Visit Tristan's website at http://www.synergyinstituteonline.com or by email at [e-mail]

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I encourage you to pick up a pen and a piece of paper and jot down the goals you want to reach. Look at each goal andevaluate  it. Make any changes necessary to ensure it meets the criteria for aSMART goals :

S  = Specific
M  = Measurable
A  = Attainable
R  = Realistic
T  = Timely

Specific

Goals should be straightforward and emphasize what you want to happen. Specifics help us to focus our efforts  and clearly define what we are going to do .

Specific is the What, Why, and How of the SMART model.

WHAT  are you going to do? Use action words such as direct, organize, coordinate, lead, develop, plan, build etc.

WHY  is this important to do at this time? What do you want to ultimately accomplish?

HOW  are you going to do it? (By...)

Ensure the goals you set is very specific, clear and easy . Instead of setting a goal to lose weight or be healthier, set a specific goal to lose 2cm off your waistline or to walk 5 miles at an aerobically challenging pace.

Measurable

If you can't measure it, you can't manage it.  In the broadest sense, the whole goal statement is a measure for the project; if the goal is accomplished, the is a success. However, there are usually several short-term or small measurements that can be built into the goal.

Choose a goal with measurable progress, so you can see the change occur . How will you see when you reach your goal? Be specific! "I want to read 3 chapter books of 100 pages on my own before my birthday" shows the specific target to be measure. "I want to be a good reader" is not as measurable.

Establish concrete criteria for measuring progress  toward the attainment of each goal you set. When you measure your progress, you stay on track, reach your target dates, and experience the exhilaration of achievement that spurs you on to continued effort required to reach your goals.

Attainable

When you identify goals that are most important to you, you begin to figure out ways you can make them come true. You develop that attitudes, abilities, skills, and financial capacity to reach them. Your begin seeing previously overlooked opportunities  to bring yourself closer to the achievement of your goals.

Goals you set which are too far out of your reach, you probably won't commit to doing. Although you may start with the best of intentions, the knowledge that it's too much for you means your subconscious will keep reminding you of this fact and will stop you from even giving it your best.

A goal needs to stretch you slightly so you feel you can do it and it will need a real commitment from you.  For instance, if you aim to lose 20lbs in one week, we all know that isn't achievable. But setting a goal to loose 1lb and when you've achieved that, aiming to lose a further 1lb, will keep it achievable for you.

The feeling of success which this brings helps you to remain motivated.

Realistic

This is not a synonym for "easy."  Realistic, in this case, means "do-able."  It means that the learning curve is not a vertical slope; that the skills needed to do the work are available; that the project fits with the overall strategy and goals of the organization. A realistic project may push the skills and knowledge of the people working on it but it shouldn't break them.

Devise a plan  or a way of getting there which makes the goal realistic. The goal needs to be realistic for you and where you are at the moment. A goal of never again eating sweets, cakes, crisps and chocolate may not be realistic for someone who really enjoys these foods.

For instance, it may be more realistic to set a goal of eating a piece of fruit each day instead of one sweet item. You can then choose to work towards reducing the amount of sweet products gradually as and when this feels realistic for you.

Be sure to set goals that you can attain with some effort! Too difficult and you set the stage for failure, but too low sends the message that you aren't very capable. Set the bar high enough for a satisfying achievement!

Timely

Set a timeframe for the goal: for next week, in three months, by fifth grade. Putting an end point on your goal gives you a clear target  to work towards.

If you don't set a time, the commitment is too vague. It tends not to happen because you feel you can start at any time. Without a time limit, there's no urgency to start taking action now.

Time must be measurable, attainable and realistic.

Everyone will benefit from goals and objectives if they are SMART. SMART, is the instrument to apply in setting your goals and objectives.

Copyright by Arina Nikitina http://www.goal-setting-guide.com/smart-goals.html

Smart 原则一 /Specific

     　　 Specific 意指具体的，订定目标必须明确而不笼统。例如，很多人想减肥，但减肥不是目标、因为这目标太抽象，不知如何达成，因此常无功而溃。而以下目标：一星期少吃两次肉、每天少吃一碗饭，就是一个具体的减肥目标。

Smart 原则二 /Measurable

     Measurable 意指可衡量的。订定目标时，需注意目标的可衡量性。既然目标需要达成，那么目标就可衡量，才能计算达成度。例如，每月减二公斤的目标，就比单纯的减重要好，因为它可以衡量、可以被检验，知道做到程度如何。

Smart 原则三 /Attractive

     　　 Attractive 说明目标是否具有吸引力。目标必须是自己所期待的或对自己有挑战的。否则，目标难以给人工作动力。目标要有吸引力有两个诀窍：第一不贪多，太多目标等于没有目标；第二是不畏难。既要藉定目标成长，就先不要想达成的困难，不然热情还没点燃就先被畏惧给打消念头了。

Smart 原则四 /Realistic

     　　 Realistic 字面的含意是实际的。这是指目标的可实现性。有些人到某个年龄会对自己所做的一切事都感到厌烦，希望能有一百八十度的大改变。但改变也需要与自己的经验、专长有关连，否则成功机会不大，徒增挫折。目标必须务实，才有可能执行，不易打退堂鼓。但务实必须与 Attractive 相调和，先想自己想做什么，再利用务实来筛选。

Smart 原则五 -Traceable

     　　关于订定目标最后一点，是 Traceable 。 Traceable 是指目标的可纪录、追踪反省、与检讨。当目标订定后，需要随时检视，适度修正，才可能达成。