Do you ever feel like you work hard but don't get anywhere? You may see little improvement in your skills or achievements when you reflect on the past five or 10 years. Or maybe it's hard for you to see how you're going to fulfill your ambitions over the next few years. It's time to start setting SMART goals. SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-Based.
This goal setting process is attributed to Peter Drucker's concept of management by objectives and was first used in the November 1981 edition of the Management Review by George T. Rubin. The criteria of SMART goals are essential for success. A goal must be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-limited. Let's take a look at each of these criteria in more detail.
Specific
: When setting a goal, it is important to be as specific as possible.For example, if you want to become a marketing manager, your goal should be “I want to gain the skills and experience necessary to become a marketing manager within my organization, so that I can develop my career and lead a successful team”. This goal is specific because it outlines exactly what you want to achieve and how you plan to do it.
Measurable
: It is important to have measurable goals so that you can track your progress and stay motivated. Evaluating progress helps you stay focused, meet your deadlines, and feel the thrill of being closer to achieving your goal. You can measure your goal of becoming a marketing manager by determining that you will have completed the necessary training courses and will have gained relevant experience within five years.Achievable
: Your goal must also be realistic and achievable to succeed.In other words, it should stretch your skills, but still be possible. When you set an achievable goal, you may be able to identify opportunities or resources that were previously overlooked and that can bring you closer to it.
Relevant
: This step is to ensure that your goal is important to you and that it is also aligned with other relevant objectives. We all need support and assistance to achieve our goals, but it is important to maintain control over them. So, make sure that your plans push everyone forward, but that you're still responsible for achieving your own goal.Time-Limited
: SMART goals are limited in time so that they can be achieved within a certain timeframe.This helps keep everyone on track and motivated to reach their goals in a timely manner. SMART goals provide a way to measure progress and be accountable for success. By systematically identifying their long-term and short-term goals, nurses who use SMART goals can monitor their professional progress to proactively guide their careers. Whether you're setting personal or professional goals, using the SMART goal framework can establish a solid foundation for success. The SMART objective framework helps turn any epic venture into a series of manageable actions that help us stay on track. Whether you want to start or grow a business, here are some examples of SMART business goals to help inspire your goal-setting process.
