SMARTer Goals

New Year Resolutions - Working SMARTer not Harder

Every New Year so many of us decide it's time to drastically change all of our bad habits. It's always a great idea to work towards positive change, but unfortunately, so many well-intended resolutions go unresolved. This year let's work smarter on keeping those goals, specifically by using SMART goals. In this blog we will discuss creating and re-evaluating goals and resolutions, as well as tips to stay focused.

The acronym SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound. When we create goals, we want to consider as many aspects of SMART as we can. By creating goals that incorporate these pieces, we can set ourselves up for success.  

Specific:

A specific goal is one that includes precise details and is not overly vague. The more specific a goal is, the easier it is for us to see the outcome, as well as the path. If you aren't sure how specific your goal is, ask friends to rephrase it. If your friends rephrase your goal differently, it might be a sign your goal is too vague. For example, if I told a friend that my New Year’s resolution is to “pick up running,” they might understand that to mean “running 3 days a week” or “running a 5k.”  We want to specify to a point where others can understand our path and end goal.

Measurable:

A measurable goal is one that can be tracked with set metrics over time. Tracking allows us to see progress, keeping us accountable and motivated. There are plenty of tools to help us focus on certain goals - fitness trackers can be your best friend for things like exercise, sleep, and even meditation. The measurement could look like many different things, whether it's “run this fast,” “run this far,” “run this often,” or even, “feel better during and after a run.” The more we can specifically measure something, the easier it is for us to see our progress. 

Attainable:

An attainable goal is one that we can realistically achieve. Typically we create resolutions when we are feeling particularly motivated, and this can lead to overly enthusiastic goals. We all have different abilities, whether it's physical, financial, or available time, and we need to make sure our goals line up realistically with our current abilities. For example, someone who has never run should not have the goal of running a marathon in the next month. A revised goal for that person could be to complete a 1-mile run, and once that goal is completed, they can work up to something bigger.

Relevant:

A relevant goal is one that matters to you and is in line with your values. We are much more likely to stay motivated with a goal that we genuinely care about, as opposed to a goal we think we should care about. If you are looking to create a goal, it can be helpful to consider areas of your wellness that are more or less important to you. For example, I am not a runner, and completing a marathon is not on my bucket list. Personally, a more relevant goal for myself would be to increase my sleep quantity. I would find more benefit from a relevant goal rather than one that feels less relevant for whatever reason. 

Time-Bound: 

A time-bound goal is one that has a timeline or a deadline. An endpoint helps us stay motivated and accountable. When we give ourselves dates to work off of, we are reminded of the goal, the progress, and the work ahead. Adding the time-bound piece also helps us to keep goals realistic - if a goal will take 3 years to complete it is probably too big of a goal. Big goals are great, but smaller goals are better, and this might mean a few smaller goals that lead to a bigger endpoint. For example, finishing a marathon is a big, and great, goal, but for so many the idea itself can be so daunting it stops us. A SMART goal might look like, Run a 5k in the next 8 weeks, and once that goal is accomplished, we can work up to a half or full marathon.  

Need some extra tips? 

- Write your goal down. Bonus points if you leave the note somewhere you can see often. 

- Approach, Not Avoid: Research shows us that goals where we take action to do something we want to are more effective than goals where we take action to avoid something we do not want. So instead of avoiding candy, we'd want to eat more fruits. 

- Be strict but not harsh, progress is not linear. If you are like most of us, you will either forget or intentionally miss a day of working towards your goal. THIS IS OKAY. No one is perfect, it's unrealistic to expect that from yourself. At the same time, we need to be mindful to not let this act as an excuse not to work towards our goal. What’s more important than missing a day is getting back to it the next. 

- It is okay to adjust your goals. We cannot predict the future, and things change, often we need to change with them. A goal of exercising daily may become unrealistic, and if that is the case, adjust as necessary. Your goals are yours, and our progress is going to be as unique as we are. A goal should be challenging, but not unrealistic.  

- Master, Don't Perform: Mastery goals are ones where we learn a new skill or build on a current one.  Performance goals are ones where we try to achieve a certain outcome. Research tells us that mastery goals are more effective than performance ones, for multiple reasons. Instead of trying to lose X amount of weight, we'd want to learn or master a type of exercise. If you do have a performance goal in mind, I encourage you to break it into smaller goals.  

Want some examples?

- Practice a 10-minute meditation every day for 4 weeks.

- Eat 4 servings of fruits and vegetables each day for 5 weeks 

- Go on a 30-minute walk at least 3 times a week for 6 weeks.