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End Notes
One year is approaching its end and another looms on the horizon. This is the time when people look back at what they’ve accomplished (or didn’t) and look forward to what the New Year holds for them. Typically, it’s when New Year’s resolutions are made, which usually fail around the end of March. This year perhaps it’s time to try something a bit different: making SMART goals that speak to what has meaning and heart for you.
I know this exercise has helped me in the past and it’s time for me to take another look at making my own goals for 2010 smarter.
SMART goals spring from intentions that each of us holds in our hearts. We all have them although we usually don’t articulate them so those intentions are hard for us to see and acknowledge. Some intentions might be, “To be a loving parent”, “To be a creator of beauty”, “To be financially successful.” When we make our heart’s intentions the basis for our goals it’s easier to realize them by putting forth the effort and will that goals require to come to fruition.
So, SMART goals are as follows:
Specific: No vagueness about it, these goals need to be specific. One of the most popular New Year’s resolutions is “I want to lose weight.” That is pretty vague since there are a number of ways, wholly unpleasant, to lose weight, such as losing a limb or developing a life-threatening illness. A better, more specific goal, that speaks to the intention “To be physically fit and healthy”, is “I workout at the gym three times a week.”
Measurable: As in the above example of going to the gym three times a week, such a goal is measurable. Either you went three times or you didn’t. If your intention is “To be financially successful”; a goal may be to save $50 a month in a savings account. Easy to measure and a goal with a sweet outcome at the end of the year!
Achievable: Many of us think of our deferred dreams as possible goals for the new year; but the question becomes, can we achieve such a dream? Do we have the physical, financial, and emotional capability to realize our goals? For example, this year I will turn 61 years old. I’m afraid it’s too late for me to achieve a goal of becoming a prima ballerina, but I can take a belly dancing class. What a hoot that would be!
Relevant: Does this goal relate directly to my intention? If your intention is “To be a loving parent”, then it is difficult to see the relevance of saving money as a goal, UNLESS the money will be used to treat your family to a trip to Disneyland, but then that becomes the goal rather than simply saving money.
Time-based: Put an end date on your goal or it recedes further and further into the future. So think in terms of selecting a reasonable amount of time in which to achieve your goal, but it would be best to limit it to a one-year time frame. That means when you create your goal you say “I will do XYZ by July 15, 2010” or whatever day during the coming year you think is possible.
And, of course, keep your intention foremost in your mind as you work toward your goal. Some people have found it helpful to create a “Treasure Map” that keeps their goal and their intention in front of their eyes. Using some old magazines, a glue stick and a piece of poster board, cut out images that relate to your goal and intention. The brighter and bolder the better. Paste them onto the board. Along the top edge, write out your goal, including the date by when you want to achieve it. Along the bottom edge, write out your intention (all intentions begin with the words “To be”.) Now post your “Treasure Map” where you can see it during the year to keep you both motivated and on track.
So, I’ve got a few goals to work on that speak to my intentions “To be a successful writer” and “To be a creative gardener”. Let’s stop in with each other later in the year and see how we’re doing in our quest to achieve the things that make our hearts sing and life vibrant and meaningful.
May the New Year be all that you hope it will be for yourself and your loved ones!
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