Smart goals
May 9, 2007Trent @ The Simple Dollar has recently dedicated many posts on how to set and reach goals. Especially when you’re just starting the whole “money business” there is hardly anything that is more important than having clearly defined goals in order to track your progress and ultimately reach your goals - one of the reasons I’m writing this blog!
The article lays out three major reasons why people not reach their goals, and surprise, surprise - it’s not really much to do with not having enough will power to keep focussed on a particular goal. The reasons for failure have their roots very early on, namely in the phase the goals are defined. Trent argues that any goals that are unclear, overly optimistic or too distant have a high chance of under-achieving or failing (depends on how you put it…).
Trent’s post reminded me of an acronym that’s commonly used in business and that you might have come across - SMART. SMART goals have the following characteristics:
- S - specific, significant (you don’t micro-manage…)
- M - measurable, meaningful
- A - achievable, action-oriented (you can influence the outcome)
- R - realistic, relevant
- T - timely, tangible, trackable
I’m not usually a big fan of “miracle cures” but I think it’s at least worth checking your goals against the above to make sure you stand a chance at actually achieving them.
