You claim that you plan your goals carefully. You say you think things through when setting your goals. But, are you really being smart about it.
How do they know if they succeeded? And when is the deadline for them to find out?
Is there a deadline or are there endless loops of unrealistic expectations that will never be met, or is there a deadline?
Is it possible to achieve the goal?
This goal is logical on a company scale. However, it is not SMART to assign it to an individual and expect them to achieve results. Relevant yes, but not SMART.
SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable Achievable and Relevant. It also helps you to answer the Five W questions.
Who is involved with the project?
What are we looking for?
It is located where?
What resources are available to us?
If you answer any of these questions with “I don’t know”, then your goal is not precise enough. Measurable – What gets measured, gets done. The success of a goal should be measured by a compatible KPI. It should either be a number (we increased our client base by X%) or a definitive answer to a predetermined “yes/no” question. A measurable goal should answer the following questions: How many?
How can I tell if it’s done?
If there is no way to answer these questions, it’s time to add an extra dimension to the goal definition.Achievable – Be realistic. You will feel like an underachiever if you set a goal to “create a self-sustaining, highly lucrative business and run it on autopilot in a month”. It will also negatively impact your team’s morale and your own. Setting achievable goals will make you feel safe and prevent you from making meaningful progress. These are the questions to ask when setting a goal.
What are my chances of achieving this goal?
Is this realistic based on external factors (financial or time constraints)?
Relevant – Answer the simple question: Is it worth striving for and why? It should be relevant for you, your team, as well as your organization. If you are still unsure, you can also ask these questions: Do we have the right resources to handle it?
Is the timing right?
Is it possible?
Is it a good match for our needs?
If you check all the boxes, you can claim that you have set yourself a relevant goal. Timebound – If your journey to your goal is never ending, you won’t achieve anything. You must set a deadline but it should be realistic. This is to avoid you falling into the trap if you do too many short-term tasks and leave your long-term goals untouched. A time-bound goal should only answer one question: When?
Although Peter Drucker and his MBO model are the ones who deserve credit for this criterion, Professor Robert S. Rubin was the first to create SMART goals. He suggested that the acronym be extended from SMART to SMARTer by adding two additional criteria: Evaluation and Reviewed.
It is easy to set SMART goals for project management. Tasks that aren’t clearly defined will result in lost time, money, or employee satisfaction. There will be times when even setting SMART objectives won’t suffice to ensure success. You will need to improve your game at those times.