5 Steps to Successfully Set and Easily Achieve Your S.M.A.R.T Goals
Effective goal setting will allow you to visualise your goal in your mind and also the required steps to making that happen.
The desired goal or objective is often referred to as an ‘outcome’. Classifying our goals as outcomes will help distinguish between where you are now and where you really want to be.
By setting outcomes we typically achieve a change in mindset; one that is more focused on what we want to achieve.
By effectively setting goals you will:
- Have a clear purpose and direction
- Be able to visualise what you want, and how to chase after it
- Be able to assess progress
- Be much more likely to achieve a result
When we considering our goals as outcomes, we must also understand that these same outcomes bring changes and consequences too. We should therefore answer a number of questions to help visualize ourselves at the end goal and what it may feel like as a result.
When setting goals, they are typically long-term outcomes. Therefore, it can be difficult to measure the small changes or progress towards these larger more significant goals, and many people can get sidetracked or lost by not understanding how to track this progress.
By setting ‘mini goals’ we can see how our daily performances and processes are helping us progress towards our main goal. By breaking the goal down into daily performances or specific tasks that would need to be completed to achieve the main goal, progress is much easier tracked and noticed.
It’s important to add facts and figures to these goals in order to get a detailed output, track progress and evaluate results. Having a solid set of goals with numerical relevance helps to program plans, set realistic time frames and allows your coach to provide the correct advice at the right times.
Setting SMART Goals
To ensure we can set effective and measurable goals, we can use the SMART principles. This means that all goals should be:
Once you’ve considered the SMART goals you’d like to set — use the following questions to help clarify your next steps and achieve success.
- Define your goal
- Why is the goal important to you?
- Where are you now in relation to your goal?
- How will you know when you’ve achieved your goal?
- What are the positive and negative consequences of achieving your goal?
- Action steps — be specific as possible
- Deadline — when do you want to achieve this goal?
- Necessary resources — What additional resources will you need for success? How will you find them? What things/subjects you need to learn about?
- Potential challenges — What additional resources will you need for success? How will you find them? What things/subjects you need to learn about?
- Potential support — How can people in your environment support you on the way to success?
- On a scale 0 to 10 — How ready are you to make changes now in order to achieve your set goal?
Interested in learning more about goal setting? Or, are you ready for a personalised coaching plan to help you take your transformation to the next level?
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