Are You Creating SMART Goals?

Have you ever heard of a goal being SMART?

Like many of you I struggled for years with creating goals. I think I last goal I created was when I was in high school. I told myself that no matter what I would graduate from college in 4 years. Back in the day they were trying to tell us that to get a good education was going to take at least 5 years.

I said, “NO WAY!” I will graduate in 4 years.

And I did.

After that goals got a bit sketchy.

I started working and in the kitchen the only goal you had was to make it through the night. So my goal setting and dreaming skills began to be put on the back burner.

For every year that I worked my corporate job, I lost a year of goals and dreams. Sad but true.

It wasn’t until I was introduced to the SMART goal that things began to change and I started setting goals once again.

So are you curious about SMART goals?

SMART Goals Defined

Specific: The More specific you get with your goals the better the success of your goal. Ask yourself these 6 w’s:

*Who:      Who is involved?

*What:     What do I want to accomplish?

*Where:    Identify a location (this could be optional depending on your goal)

*When:     Establish a time frame (30, 60, 90 days)

*Which:    Identify requirements and constraints.

*Why:      Specific reasons, purpose or benefits of accomplishing the goal.

EXAMPLE:  A general goal… Get more leads. A smart goal… Generate 20 leads using  my Blog in the next 30 days.

Measurable – Give yourself a time line. Do you want to reach your goal in day, months, or years? It will be different for each person.

Attainable – It is something you believe you can achieve? Don’t confuse this with a wish.

For some of you getting 5 leads would be fantastic. Making an extra $500 would be attainable.

As much as we want the $10K a month income, if you are struggling to make $100 bucks than 10K is not attainable for you. So keep the goal small and celebrate each step forward. As you grow so will your SMART goals.

Realistic– To be realistic, a goal must represent an objective toward which you are both willing and able to work. A goal can be both high and realistic; you are the only one who can decide just how high your goal should be. But be sure that every goal represents substantial progress.

A high goal is frequently easier to reach than a low one because a low goal exerts low motivational force. Some of the hardest jobs you ever accomplished actually seem easy simply because they were a labor of love.

Timely – A goal should be grounded with a time frame. Don’t have a someday goal but an exact goal. Get 5 new distributors in 30 days. Lose 10lbs by Sept. 1st.

When you have goals with a time frame you are telling your sub-conscience what you know you can achieve. You are setting into motion goals that can be attained.

T can also stand for Tangible – A goal is tangible when you can experience it with one of the senses, that is, taste, touch, smell, sight or hearing.

When your goal is tangible you have a better chance of making it specific and measurable and thus attainable.

Today, my goals are what I call my non-negotiable. These are the tasks I must do daily to achieve the results I want.

Quick Tip: When you write your goals in cursive writing you create a more permanent connection to your conscience and sub-conscience.

Aside from its use for recording or sending information, the act of writing in cursive utilizes both the right and left hemispheres of the brain simultaneously. Iris Hatfield, author of New American Cursive, wrote, “[I] recommend cursive handwriting as a strategy to stimulate brain synchronicity — that is, to coordinate the right side of the brain or visual, with the left side or verbal and linear areas of the brain.” She explains that physiological movements of writing cursive letters, “help build pathways in the brain while improving mental effectiveness.”

Did this help you? Are you ready to create SMART goals? Do you still have questions, post them in the comment section.

***Did This Help You? If so, I would greatly appreciate if you commented below and shared on Facebook and/or Google+.***

Yours in Gratitude,

Chef Katrina van Oudheusden

Connect with me on Google+

Email: Katrina@theChefKatrina.com

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