Sometimes we fall short of our goals, and that’s okay. Everyone falls from time to time, it’s just part of the journey, but if you find yourself consistently not reaching or giving up on your goals, it may be time to find a new way to set your intentions and work on a new strategy going forward.
One great way to do this is to set yourself SMART goals. Working on SMART goals can help you to be strategic; set targets that are clear, attainable, and backed by a plan to accomplish them. SMART is a breakdown that helps make your goals and ambitions more achievable by helping you to break them down into steps.
S - Specific
M - Measurable
A - Achievable
R - Realistic
T - Timely
So, let’s break it down and look at how using SMART can benefit you and your business.
Be Specific
When you are specific you give yourself a better visual of where you are aiming to be, you have something to really work towards instead of something such as “I want to earn more money” Well how much money? £5,000? £10,000? £100,000? In what time frame? By setting things clearly and giving yourself a number you can begin to actually visualise your outcome and how manageable it really is.
Once you have done this you will be able to begin breaking down your goal into smaller more manageable steps which, in the long run, help you in your journey towards creating your success and meeting your goals.
Is it Measurable?
Is your goal something that you can really reach? Does it have a date of completion? When giving yourself a goal you want it to be something that can be measurable so you can compare and see the improvement. Not only would this help you to realise just what you truly are capable of, but it will help you to focus, what you can do next to excel further?
If your goal isn’t measurable, how can you say you’ve really ever achieved it?
Can it really be Achieved?
While you want your goal to be something that you need to push yourself towards and work hard for you also want it to be attainable. You want it to be something that you know with a little bit of hard work and graft that you can achieve it. You do not want to stretch too far from what is realistic for you right now, it may be in the future you can work towards a certain number but you should always think logically. Anything is possible if you put your mind to it but breaking down your goals into more manageable and realistic steps will help you to stay motivated and on track.
Are you being Realistic?
Of course, you have an ultimate goal, and that's fine, we all dream of something that we really want to work toward and that we would love to achieve. Be bold in your vision. When looking at SMART goal setting it is beneficial for you to be realistic, what goals do you know you will be able to work towards and achieve in a realistic timeframe. This could be anything from improving on your current habits to setting time aside to focus just on improving your skillset to help you achieve your more measurable goal, which in turn all helps towards reaching your ultimate goal.
What is your timeframe?
When you work SMART you set timeframes, this helps you to give yourself ample time to achieve your goal and keep you accountable. Being SMART means you should be reasonable, is there a time frame that you think would be in terms of your goal? How long will it take for you to start earning your desired monthly salary goal? Is the goal realistic for the timeframe you are giving it? Setting a timeframe will help you with tracking your progress. It will help you realise if you need to reassess your focus.
Always remember you can go back and reset goals, just be sure to look at the possible reasons as to why you did not achieve your goal in the timeframe set. As long as you have clarity on why you didn’t meet them and can look at ways to improve on them, why not get back up and try again.
A great way to ensure you do achieve your SMART goals is to, as we said before, start small. Grouping your goals into smaller, more manageable steps and prioritising which actions you’ll take next will help you create an overall Action Plan. This can then help you on your journey to success. This strategy can lead to massive results that will help you focus your energy. The clarity it gives puts power behind your goals, giving you the opportunity to look at your progress frequently and take new actions and directions if needed.
Another good thing is to write them down. Write down your goals in a journal, into an app, or even into a Word document. Just make sure they are documented. Then run through the checklist of ensuring your goals are following the SMART outline: Are you phrasing the goal to be specific, measurable, attainable, and realistic within a time frame? Even if you write your goal and then break it down underneath to help.
You should always celebrate every win and not let fear hold you back. When you celebrate wins, yes even the small ones, your brain gets a boost of dopamine and you get re-energized, you feel happier.
Also if you can see that you may not be making the progress that you expected, take a step back and look at why; what’s holding you back? Why are you hesitant? Is your goal not as reasonable as you first thought? or are you self-sabotaging due to feeling reluctant because of a fear of failure?
Sometimes, finding the source of your hesitation is absolutely critical, and overcoming our fears is pivotal. It is something that is needed to reach our goals as well as personal and professional development. With that being said, we have almost a primal hunger for reaching a goal, it almost frees you from your fear of failure, even when the goal seems intimidating. In this way, SMART goal setting is part and parcel of self-discovery and, in turn, to achieving outcomes you never thought possible you need to really process what it is you want and what exactly you are trying to achieve.