So how can we set goals that will help us succeed? One of the best ways is to check each goal using the SMART test.
The New Year tends to entice us into all kinds of new commitments. Whether it’s establishing new habits, reigniting long-abandoned hobbies, or fitness, it’s an easy time to get drawn into new resolutions.
Unfortunately, most of them fail. And the question we’re inevitably left to answer is, why? And while it seems like it should be complicated, it’s usually quite simple: We aren’t honest with ourselves. We believe making a goal and sticking to it will be easy. We forget that change requires fitting those changes into our current routine and developing new systems to support them. What are we going to give up or do less to make time for this new goal?
Goals need to be positive changes that improve or resolve something we desire and become permanent parts of our lives. The fact is, simply setting a goal and depending on our willpower to reach it is typically a prelude to failure.
So what’s a good, achievable goal? Well, let’s start with some poorly constructed ones:
- I will start to eat breakfast every day.
- I will begin to walk after work.
- I will lose weight.
These are all very typical examples, but they all have a similar trait: they’re too vague. They don’t define a way to achieve the goal or include a means to measure its success or completion.
So how can we set goals that will help us succeed? One of the best ways is to check each goal using the SMART test.
- Is it Specific? Is the statement clear, to the point, and stated in a positive manner?
- Is it Measurable? Does it suggest how you’ll determine success?
- Is it Achievable? Is it something you can actually reach?
- Is it Relevant? Is it going to materially improve your life or situation?
- Is it Time-Bound? Does it set a deadline for completion?
Each SMART aspect you can include in your goal will improve the chance of success. Here are some examples of good SMART goals:
- I will improve my diet by eating breakfast three times a week for two weeks.
- I will increase my fitness by walking 20 minutes a day after dinner for a month.
- I will lose weight by limiting sweets to no more than 100 calories per day for a month.
Here’s a template you can use to create your own.
- I will ______ (achieve this) by _____ (doing this) _____ (this often) for _____ (this long).
Once you’ve filled this template out with some of your goals for the year, it’s important to also remember the following steps to help you along the way:
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Visualize your goals: Visualization works by preparing your mind and body for what you want to happen, and the more you do it, the stronger it becomes. This will assist you in developing a strong mental image of a future event and increasing your self-confidence so that you believe you can achieve the goals you set. Visualization, whether through daily affirmations or the placement of sticky notes in specific areas of your home, is a useful technique for achieving your goals and living your dreams.
- Tell your friends and family: If you’re someone who finds it hard to motivate yourself, struggles with making progress, or constantly procrastinates, finding like-minded people who are working toward similar goals can help you along your journey. Think of it as having an accountability buddy. There is an important caveat, though: you must tell the right people. Telling the wrong people about your goals may lead to them discrediting or disincentivizing (“Are you sure you can do that?”). This can kill your confidence and derail your goals.
- Give yourself grace and adjust when necessary: This can be difficult for some, but it may be the most important step in the goal-achieving process. Nobody’s perfect. You will make mistakes. You will forget. And that’s OK! Get into the mindset of progress over perfection; this will help you remember that as long as you are making consistent efforts to better yourself you will finish in a better position than when you started.
There’s no secret when it comes to setting new goals and starting new behaviors. All you have to do is be honest with yourself and be ready to make a commitment. Then create a specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time-bound goal and make changes and adjustments as needed. Soon the change you decided to make will be a regular part of your life and you’ll have made a truly lasting impact.