As we put all our festive frolicking behind us and begin to countdown the days until New Year, it’s a time when New Year’s resolution are formulated and a desire to announce them at every possible opportunity becomes evident. The start of a New Year is a great opportunity to turn over a new leaf and adopt some new, healthy practices as well as knock a few bad ones on the head. Having a plan in place to ensure that you don’t overcook it, and burn out or become demotivated by unrealistic expectations. Have a plan in place and stick jolly well to it.
Planning is an invaluable tool; it can help maintain focus, keep one motivated, which in turn can lead to the fulfilment of an ambition. Goal setting is essentially a form of planning. Having a short-term plan that is going to help achieve something much more longer term will help ensure things stay on track. Setting achievable short-term markers along the way can help with adherence to the longer-term strategy. Instead of adopting wishy washy resolutions, create a clear plan with verifiable trajectories that work towards a certain objective, with clear milestones and realistic goal attainability. Establishing when you’re going to achieve it and how you’re going to go about it is pivotal. After all, a goal without a plan is merely a wish.
Goals should be;
Specific
Clear and have significance. This is where you establish exactly what it is you want to achieve. What do you want to achieve? When do you want to achieve it by? How are you going to achieve it? For example, I want to take 20 seconds off my 5 km time in three months by committing to a couple of running sessions a week. You get the idea.
Measurable
Quantifiable and be an indicator of success. They should be structured in a way that allows progress to be tracked. Upon completion of your goal, you should be able to visibly see or feel something. Having physical characteristics in place can really help refine what exactly it is that you’re after.
Achievable
Attainable and realistic. Setting the bar high is a good practice but if you set it too high, then you’re going to be one disgruntled so and so. Anyway, getting rejected a few times is bearable but every time isn’t going to do much for morale. It should be something that is achievable for you, something that challenges and upon completion, brings fulfilment and satisfaction.
Relevant
Have a meaning and fit in with other goals. What is reaching this goal going to do for you? Is it relevant to you? Not only should it be relevant to you, it should be beneficial to you. There’s no point in embarking on a mission that’s only going to have you scratching your head as to why you set out on the voyage in the first place.
Timely
Have a deadline; a date to work towards. Deadlines are not everyone’s bag but they can often bring out the best in us. Ensure that you have taken realistic consideration into how long it will take you to complete a task. Having a date in the diary can help provide that light at the end of the tunnel.
The SMART acronym can be applied to all walks of life. It is an effective tool that can help maintain focus in the short run and sustain motivation in the long run, increasing the likelihood of achieving the overall outcome. Don’t let that gym membership become an unnecessary expenditure due to lack of usage, let’s keep it part of that routine – your goals will thank you and so will your insurance company. Start the year as you mean to go on - create a plan, put that plan into practice and go one better on the previous year. Happy goal smashing.
