Do you find it a challenge to set goals for your business or personal life? Ideally, a goal should move you out of your comfort zone, but still be attainable. So use your answers to these 7 questions to make the goal-setting process more successful in your business and personal life.
#1: Is the goal specific enough to be measured?
Creating specific goals that can easily be tracked and measured will help create a framework of success.
Are you familiar with the SMART goals acronym?
“SMART” stands for:
Specific – Measurable – Attainable – Relevant – Time-bound
Keep the SMART acronym in mind when creating your goals.
#2: What action is required to reach the goal?
Make a specific list of actions or steps needed to reach the goal you’ve set.
For example, in order to reach a weight-loss goal of 15 pounds, I need to adjust my diet (by cutting out 300-500 calories a day), exercise at least 4 days a week, and reduce the amount of “sweets” I eat.
#3: What do I have to give up in order to reach my goal?
Whatever your goal: gaining 4 new clients each month or losing 10 pounds in the next 3 months, you’ll most likely have to give up something along the way in order to achieve it.
You may have to give up high-calorie, fatty foods for a weight-loss goal or 3 hours of free time each week to devote to additional marketing for new clients…but something’s gotta give.
Be realistic about what you’ll be giving up ahead of time so you have less chance of getting frustrated and overwhelmed when things become challenging.
#4: How will I measure my progress or success?
A weekly weigh-in is a simple one for weight-loss; a list of new clients each month is also easy to track. When I was in network marketing, I added a new “smiley face” to my tracking poster with each new person who joined my team 🙂
It’s also important to set up a system to regularly check your progress. You know life will get in the way, so plan ahead. Set up a time on your calendar each week, month, quarter – whatever time-frame works best – to track your goal’s progress.
#5: How will I stay accountable?
You may have a family member who can hold you accountable, friends who want to make an accountability group, or a more organized support group available.
Whoever it may be, an accountability partner will definitely help you (both) stay on track.
#6: What is the cost of not reaching this goal?
The answer is an easy one when your health is involved, but if your goal is business-related and you are the boss, it helps to spell out exactly what will be “lost” by not reaching the goal.
This is not necessarily to scare you into action, but some of us need the extra bit of motivation that comes with spelling out the costs of inaction.
#7: What are the rewards or positive results when I reach this goal?
We had to get a little tough on ourselves in question #6, because it’s good to be realistic in your goal-setting, but the answer to question #7 should help us shift to a positive attitude (which is definitely necessary to achieve any goal).
Maybe you need a visual representation of the reward you’ll receive when you reach the goal or a regular reminder in your phone of the results your goal will bring to you.
Or if you happen to be a nut about inspirational quotes like me, then maybe you need to read one positive-thinking quote a day to keep you on the right track. Here’s one to get you started:
“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.”
Thomas Jefferson
Have any tips to add to this post? I’d love to hear them! Good luck with your goal-setting process!
Have questions about setting goals for your business or social media strategy? I offer an initial, free consultation to learn more about your business and then give you some tips for optimizing your digital marketing.
Contact me to set up a time here.