Did you know that SMART goals can actually hurt instead of help you?
It’s true that SMART goals can help you make progress and help you succeed – when you use them correctly. However, when done incorrectly, it can also hinder your progress and success.
So that leaves us with these two questions:
- How could you doing them wrong?
- And how do you do them right?
That’s what we discuss in this article. We will cover the basics of SMART Goals, how to write them, common errors when using SMART goals, and extra tips to write them (or any type of goal) better.
Let’s go!
Table of Contents
The basics of SMART goals
What are SMART Goals?
The SMART Goal system is a goal-setting framework that uses an acronym to help you write better goals. Each letter stands for a word that helps remind you of important elements that need to be in your goals.
What does the SMART goals acronym stand for?
- S – Specific
- M – Measurable
- A – Attainable/Achievable
- R – Relevant/Realistic
- T – Timely/Time-bound
(Note that as you read and hear about SMART Goals, you will find that different people use different words for the letters. I put the most common, but do know that there are other variations as well. This Wikipedia article lists a bunch of them, if interested.)
S – Specific
Goals should be specific and concrete. Vague goals are anathema to success. You must be clear about what you want.
You and anyone around you should be able to quickly look at your goal and know exactly what you are trying to accomplish.
Making your goals specific makes them well-defined and focused. They are clear. You know what you want and others can quickly tell what you are trying to accomplish.
Examples of vague goals:
- To lose weight.
- To grow my business.
- To increase sales.
- To earn more money.
- To read more books.
- To be better at baseball.
- To lift more weight.
Examples of specific SMART goals:
- To lose 15 pounds….
- To grow my customer base by 10% in my business…
- To increase sales by 30%….
- To earn $20,000 more this year….
- To read 1