The best, most achievable goals are S.M.A.R.T. 

Specific

Measureable

Achievable

Realistic

Timely

When consulting I have often heard executives talk about increasing revenue.  When I ask said executive how they are going to do that they say, “Sell more widgets.”  Well, that’s a start, but how many more widgets?  By when will those widgets be sold? 

A S.M.A.R.T. goal is best demonstrated by talking about weight loss goal setting.  Not only because most of us have set goals in this arena, but because most people know what is achievable in weight loss.  A “non-SMART” goal would sound like, “I want to lose 50 pounds.”  Is it specific?  Yes.  Can you measure it?  Yes.  Can you achieve it?  Well, that depends.  How long is it going to take you to lose that weight?  If you say, “A month,” then the answer is no.  However, there is no timeline so we have no way to judge.  The same answer goes for realistic and timely we have no way of knowing if this will work. 

Let’s take that and make it into a S.M.A.R.T. goal.  I am going to lose 1 pound per week for the next 50 weeks for a total weight loss of 50 pounds in 50 weeks.  Is it specific?  Absolutely.  Is it measureable?  Yes, we can step on the scale and see if we have achieved the goal.  Is it achievable and realistic?  Yes, by most people’s standards it is.  What about timely? Certainly, every week we can weight ourselves to see if we are on track.

The next time you set a goal in business, try and reframe it in terms that are Specific, Measureable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely and see where it takes you.