A Fresh Start For Those That Are SMART

As I headed to the gym this morning, I was late because I’d forgotten that it was the first day of school. I’ve always loved this time of year and even though I don’t have children in school any longer, it still feels like a fresh start. Summer is over and the time has come to reevaluate those goals we set at the start of the year and make sure we get them done. I’ve written before about my use of SMART. I thought it might be a good time for a review.

The acronym S.M.A.R.T. stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. SMART goals first appeared in an issue of Management Review (vol. 70, issue 11, November 1981) in an article titled “There’s a S.M.A.R.T. way to write management’s goals and objectives.” By George Doran, Arthur Miller and James Cunnigham. Below you’ll find the basic outline for S.M.A.R.T. goals and how they may apply to your goals.

Specific - A specific goal has a much greater chance of being accomplished than a general goal. To set a specific goal you must answer the six “W” questions:

Who: Who is involved?
What: What do I want to accomplish?
Where: Identify a location.
When: Establish a time frame.
Which: Identify requirements and constraints.
Why: Specific reasons, purpose or benefits of accomplishing the goal.

Example: A general goal would be, “I want to be a real estate investor.” But a specific goal would say, “I will buy my first property in 6 months.”

Measurable - Establish concrete criteria for measuring progress toward the attainment of each goal you set. When you measure your progress, you stay on track, reach your target dates, and experience the exhilaration of achievement that spurs you on to continued effort required to reach your goal.

Example: To determine the measurability of an investment goal, ask questions such as…… What can I afford? What is my time frame? What kind of cash flow do I want year 1, year 5… Then take action such as creating a budget.

Attainable – Are you prepared to make the commitment to make the goals you’ve identified happen? If you believe they are attainable, you will begin to figure out ways you can make them come true. You develop the attitudes, abilities, skills, and financial capacity to reach them. You begin seeing previously overlooked opportunities to bring yourself closer to the achievement of your goals.

Example: Plan your steps wisely. Establish a time frame that allows you to carry out those steps. Goals that may have seemed far away and out of reach eventually move closer and become attainable, not because your goals shrink, but because you grow and expand to match them.

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.

Example: It’s also important to set milestones within the goals that help you see that a big goal is realistic. As a real estate investor, you might have a couple of different mile stones 1) create a budget, 2) get prequalified for a loan, 3) view 10 properties a month and so on.

Timely – A goal should be grounded within a time frame. With no time frame tied to it, there’s no sense of urgency. If you want to lose 10 lbs, when do you want to lose it by? “Someday” won’t work. But if you anchor it within a timeframe, “by May 1st,” then you’ve set your unconscious mind into motion to begin working on the goal. This is one reason the school year works so well, a defined time frame. It’s also OK to adjust your time frame as you learn more about the process of your goal.

Example: You set a time frame to get pre-approved for a loan of 15 days but find out more information is needed and it’s going to take 30 days.

It’s a great time to refocus and make the most out of 2014.

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