Your SMART Guide To Goal Setting

by Vickie Chin on Dec 15, 2020

A new year is right around the corner and while we know people have mixed feelings about new year's resolutions, we still believe in the power of goal setting.

Goal setting can be done a handful of ways. For some people it just means setting a mental goal or intention that you aim and strive for. Others write a checklist or dial into the powers of manifestation.

However, when it comes to setting goals, what we've found works best is setting SMART goals. When you set a smart goal, your goal is:

Specific - what exactly are you trying to accomplish?

Measurable - can I measure or track my progress? how?

Achievable - is my goal actually possible to achieve? what steps do I need to take?

Relevant - is this a meaningful goal? is this the right time? is this in line with my long term objectives?

Time-Bound - what's a reasonable amount of time I should give myself? give yourself a firm deadline and the tools you need to ensure that you meet it.

Here's an example goal: Drink more water!

Specific: Drink 3 glasses of water per day

Measurable: One glass before each meal

Achievable: 3 glasses a day, for one week as opposed to aiming for 3 litres per day, forever

Relevant: This is one step towards an ongoing goal of drinking more water and maintaining overall good health

Time Bound: Do this for the first week of January. It's okay to start small! This is how habits are formed.

When you consider all of the above when making a list of goals, you're setting yourself up to check everything off of your list. Don't forget, goals can be long term and short term. Rather than setting a goal to "lose x amount of pounds by 2022" try setting a smaller goal like "working out x amount of times per week" - small habits turn into big ones and before you know it, your daily, weekly and monthly goals are helping you on your way to tackle the new year.