As the new year begins, people from all walks of life take up New Year’s resolutions in the hopes of making a change. While it’s not necessary to start new projects or goals at the beginning of the year, the magic of a new year can prompt us to spring into action. As George Eliot once said, “It is never too late to be what you might have been.” Here are 4 tips to achieving your goals in the new year.
SMART Goals
SMART goals are a great framework to stick to those resolutions that you’ve been wanting to accomplish. SMART is an acronym that stands for:
Specific: The goal should be clear and precise. When possible use numbers to make your goal sound more concrete.
Example: I want to increase the engagement rate of my audience by X% through email marketing automation.
Measurable: You should be able to track the progress of your goal. This will tell you how close you are to achieving it or if you are on track with completing the goal before your deadline.
Example: I want to improve my mile time from X minutes to Y minutes within Z months.
Achievable: Is this a goal that you can reasonably achieve? Sometimes you may not have the time or the resources. Other times, the goal may not be in your own hands. For example, the goal to get a promotion would not be ideal because a promotion can depend on your manager, the company, peer assessment and many other factors. Focus on the outcomes that you can directly impact.
Example: I want to develop an expertise in user and data management and track our company’s leads in greater detail by becoming a certified Salesforce Administrator by MM/DD/YYYY.
Realistic: Is this goal the correct goal for you currently? You want to ensure that you are the right person for the goal and that it’s a high priority for you. You may have other goals that are higher priority or perhaps it isn’t the right time to pursue this goal.
Example: You want to study and take an exam to become a certified Salesforce Administrator, but your organization has other pressing needs that require your attention, and you have family obligations. In this scenario, it would be appropriate to pursue the goal at another time.
Time-Bound: Add a deadline to your goal. Goals that don’t have deadlines have no urgency, so give yourself a deadline to motivate you to get started. Deadlines are also a great way to determine whether you are making progress and on track to completion.
In addition to writing out your SMART goals, write out the details of the outcome so you are absolutely clear about what you want. Here are a couple examples:
If you want to purchase a new car, write the color, the make and model, the gas mileage, etc.
If you want to get a job, be clear on the industry you're interested in working for, size of the company, size of your team, salary expectations, health insurance, type of work that you’ll be performing, working hours, company culture, and much more.
Lastly, write your goals in the present tense. This is important because it gets you into the state of feeling as if you are accomplishing the outcome.
Start Small
Start with smaller goals. They are easier to achieve and lower the barrier of getting started. Also, don’t be afraid to chunk down. Oftentimes, a goal may seem too big to be achievable. Break the goal into smaller sections and create deadlines for those segments.
Focus on 1-2 Goals
Choose 1-2 areas from your life to create your new objective. There are many things you may want to achieve, but too many goals will divide your time and attention; it will also take longer to complete your outcome. Focus on goals that will have the most impact in your life.
Review Your Goals Daily
Once you’ve written out your goals, go through the process of reviewing them on a daily basis, either before you sleep or when you wake up in the morning. Follow the process below:
Re-write your goal on a piece of paper in the present tense. This step is important because “handwriting forces your brain to mentally engage with the information” as opposed to typing which can be done without much thought.
As you read through what you’ve written, feel the emotion of achieving your goal. You are setting yourself up to feel good which will naturally move you in the direction of completing your outcome. This popular concept is known as Being - Doing - Having. When you are in a positive state of being, you are more likely to do what is necessary which will enable you to have what you desire in life.
Visual your goal being accomplished in vivid detail.
Authored By Kritashi
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