As the C.E.O. of our Life Inc. we want
our life to be successful. We all have our own definition of what
success looks like. And we capture that in our goals.
"The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your entire life running up and down the field and never score." -- Bill CopelandSo how do we set goals efficiently? We do it SMARTER
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| The acronym is attributed to George T. Doran in an article in the November 1981 issue of Management Review. |
Specific
The more detail you put in describing
your goal, the more real it will feel. Your subconscious mind is a
goal setting machine, it will go after whatever we tell it to.
Describe your goal using different
modalities: How will I attain it, Where will I be, Who will I be
with, What will I see, hear, feel, taste and smell When I attain my
goal?
Keeping the goal vague and general will
allow you to cut corners and follow the path of least resistance. For
example, if I set a goal in a vague way such as “I want to earn
more money”, simply receiving a bonus or pay rise could be
sufficient for your subconscious mind to consider the goal attained.
While the non-specified goal of changing careers, studying or setting
up your business, that you actually had in mind, goes straight onto
the back-burner.
Write your goal in the positive, write
what you want. Do not write down what you want to avoid or don't
want. The subconscious mind doesn't do well with negatives, it tends
to delete the negative and keep the concept behind it and focus on
that.
For example, if your goal is along the
lines of “I do not want to be poor”, guess what will stick in
your mind?
Measurable
How will you know you have attained
your goal? The result needs to be measurable.
This will also allow you to track your
progress to see whether you are on track.
If the goal is a big goal, it might
help to break it down into different steps and treat each of the
steps as a goal in itself.
Achievable
The goal has to be achievable. It might
be simply my own perception, but if you are currently earning $50K
per year, it's probably not so achievable to earn $1M the next year.
Setting a goal that is not achievable
is a sure way of destroying your motivation and in the process
getting confirmation for some of those self-doubts (“See, I knew I
wasn't capable of”, “I am no good”, ...).
Setting an unattainable goal is often
done as a way of self-sabotaging.
On the other hand, don't make the goal
too easy. Don't make it about something you basically already have.
Setting a goal that is outside of your comfort zone, will make you
grow.
"I think goals should never be easy, they should force you to work, even if they are uncomfortable at the time." -- Michael Phelps
Relevant / Realistic
Are they your goals? This is a point
that a lot of people do not check. It is very easy to be living a
dream that is not your own. Whether you are following in the
footsteps of your parents and their aspirations for their children or
being influence by the media around you (celebrity culture, social
media, …)
there are many sources of dreams, goals and values that might be
pushed on us and that we take on as our own.
Check internally whether the goals you
are consciously following, are aligned with your own values.
Is the goal initiated and maintained by
you? In other words, are you in control of the outcome? Many times we
set goals that are depending on other people's actions. This takes
away control over the outcome of the goal, which
reduced your agency in this goal.
Time-bound
Set a specific time by which you will
have achieved this goal. If you don't set a certain deadline, your
subconscious mind will give you literally all the time in the world,
which in practice keeps you from attaining your goal.
This is how procrastination stays alive
and kicking.
Again, set a time limit that is
realistic but which does give you a certain challenge.
Do not get demotivated if you are
unable to reach the deadline. Look at what has lead to it and
re-evaluate.
Ethical
Congruency is a fundamental part of our
goals. If the goal does not line up with your internal moral compass,
our basic values that guide our life, you might want to ask yourself
what drives you to set this goal in the first place.
For example, attaining a goal by
putting others down or doing wrong to others, will end up feeling
like a hollow victory.
Congruency is not just checking whether
the goal in itself is ethical, but also whether it creates any
conflict with other goals or your personal values.
Recorded
Write your goal(s) down!
Straightforward as this might seem, most people only have their goals
in their head and never write them down. The very act of writing will
commit the goals more deeply in your mind, and will allow you to
re-write or add more detail if needed, and finally it will allow you
to share it with others.
Make your goal known to people who are
on your team, the people who have your best interest in mind and want
to help you grow and succeed.
"It must be born in mind that the tragedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goals to reach." -- Benjamin E. Mays
When your goal is clearly defined,
recorded, shared and visualised, there is only one thing left to do:
take massive and decisive action.
Also allow yourself to make mistakes.
You only truly fail when you give up or you don't even try. There
will be good days and there will be bad days. Keep your goal in mind,
read it often, visualise and take action.
Go all in, dare to give it all, without
fear of whether you will succeed or not. If you don't, you will hold
back and you reduce your changes of attaining your goal.
William F. O'Brien put it beautifully
in his poem 'Better to Try and Fail Then to Never Try at All'
Some
say risk nothing, try only for the sure thing,
Others say nothing gambled nothing gained,
Go all out for your dream.
Life can be lived either way, but for me,
I'd rather try and fail, than never try at all, you see.
Some say "Don't ever fall in love,
Play the game of life wide open,
Burn your candle at both ends."
But I say "No! It's better to have loved and lost,
Than never to have loved at all, my friend."
When many moons have gone by,
And you are alone with your dreams of yesteryear,
All your memories will bring you cheer.
You'll be satisfied, succeed or fail, win or lose,
Knowing the right path you did choose.
Others say nothing gambled nothing gained,
Go all out for your dream.
Life can be lived either way, but for me,
I'd rather try and fail, than never try at all, you see.
Some say "Don't ever fall in love,
Play the game of life wide open,
Burn your candle at both ends."
But I say "No! It's better to have loved and lost,
Than never to have loved at all, my friend."
When many moons have gone by,
And you are alone with your dreams of yesteryear,
All your memories will bring you cheer.
You'll be satisfied, succeed or fail, win or lose,
Knowing the right path you did choose.
And finally … don't forget to
celebrate. All too often, we forget to acknowledge what we
did; the work and determination we put into achieving our goal.
So allow yourself to enjoy that feeling
of satisfaction when you do achieve your goal, and reward yourself
(in a congruent way of course).
This is part of a series of articles designed to get more out of life.
Bookmark my blog in order to not miss out : https://yourlifeceo.blogspot.com/
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