never give up .” Dixon says she has a co-worker who is her accountability partner to make sure she stays on track .
Danielle St . Onge from Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate concurs . She says she not only creates annual goals for herself , but quarterly ones to help her achieve and monitor her annual goals . She also creates monthly and weekly goals to make sure she is achieving her quarterly goals . For St Onge , goal setting reaches far beyond finances . “ I make sure I have several goals every year for my personal life , my business life , and my professional life ,” says St . Onge . “ My personal goals give me time for my friends and family . My business goals consist of whatever is going to grow my business , and my professional goals are things I ’ m going to do to grow as a professional , such as education and networking with other professionals in Women ’ s Council .” She also makes sure she schedules at least one lunch a week to meet with a friend or family member to accomplish her weekly personal goal . “ You need to have balance in your life . That is extremely important to me .” She also relies on an accountability partner .
Goal setting requires some time and effort . For some it may take one day , for others it may take weeks , and still for others , goal setting can be an ongoing event throughout the year . SMART Goals is an acronym that represents a framework for setting goals that includes five criteria : specific , measurable , achievable , relevant , and timely . Using these five criteria will help anyone stay accountable in achieving their goals .
While setting goals can be time consuming , they are necessary for success . Cooke also says that your goals need to be challenging to you as well . “ If your goals don ’ t scare you , they are not big enough ,” she says . “ Your goals should push you and stretch you to be uncomfortable at times .”
S = Specific : Make sure your goal is not too generic , such as “ I ’ m going to increase my sales ;” “ I ’ m going to increase my sales by 10 % “ is more specific .
M = Measurable : Make sure you can measure your goals . Saying “ I will be friendlier to people to increase sales ” is not measurable ; but saying “ I will attend 10 new networking events this year ( in order to meet more people to increase sales )” is .
A = Achievable : Make sure the goal can be achieved . Don ’ t set goals that are not realistic for yourself . Setting a goal that says you ’ re going to be attending 20 new networking events a month may not be realistic . Only you can know what is or is not attainable for yourself .
R = Relevant : Make sure the goal is your goal and that it fits in with the rest of your life . If you set a goal that you can ’ t relate to or that it doesn ’ t pertain to who you are , you ’ re not going to achieve it . Saying that you ’ re going to increase your sphere of influence by taking up golf ( when you really don ’ t like golf ) is not a good idea . You need to enjoy working on the goal .
T = Timely : Choose a time frame . This means your goal should have a deadline or a date set for completion . Setting a timeline for your goal helps you identify and stick to the specific actions that you need to work towards that goal . When you don ’ t set a timeline , there is no internal pressure to accomplish the goal , so it can often end up on the back burner .
Nevertheless , the rewards for achieving your goals are great . “ Setting goals makes me feel stressed , but also excited ,” says Oliver . When you accomplish your goals , you feel rejuvenated and ready for the next challenge .”
WHAT IS A SMART GOAL ?
SMART is an acronym for five criteria that each of your goals should have . Here is an explanation of each criteria .
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