Setting SMART Goals - Lesson 2

Well, welcome back to our SMART personal development plans. Now that you've understood the foundations and the need for honesty and integrity in approaching a SMART plan, I think it's very important that we identify the aspects of a SMART goal so that we can follow these steps. First of all, take the time to review your behaviors and mindset assessments.

What are some of the things that people like you struggle with? What element of integrity might those weaknesses correspond with? And which of your role or job duties correspond with that element of integrity? Second, look back at your behaviors, mindsets, and motivation assessments. What are some of your strengths? Because we're going to need to draw on these to help you achieve your goals. So let's break down the SMART process so that you have an understanding of where we're going.

And again, we're going to focus on you personally right now and we'll get to group stuff later on in this process. So we encourage you to write down these goals in a SMART format because written goals are four times more likely to be achieved than if they just remain in your brain. And then if you write them in the format that I'm getting ready to cover for you, the SMART format, they will be 10 times as likely to be achieved as if they were written down.

So think about this. If you have an idea, write it down and it becomes four times. If you put it into a SMART format and chunk it up so that you have measurable steps, then it's going to be 40, four zero times more likely to occur.

Why? Because SMART concepts help you anchor those goals. So let's dig into specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely aspects of the SMART plan. Now in your study guide, you're going to see a format for the SMART process.

In the top left hand corner, I want you to review that behavior and mindset profile and write down what your strengths are. If you're a high D, high I individualistic, then one of your strengths are that you are a get-or-done type person. You are going to achieve a lot.

But also summarize those weaknesses because on the other side, that high DI, individualistic person, is going to be moving at such a fast pace. Other people may not understand what they're trying to accomplish and it is the nature of the high individualistic person to not slow down long enough and build the trust necessary between other people and engage with them. So remember that so that when you make your goals, you are going to have to say, yes, I get a lot of things done, but I need to slow down with the people that are going to help support my processes.

So when you look at it specific, be very specific. It's not just like I want to be the world's best dad. I want to be the world's best dad because I teach my children about Christ and we're going to measure that.

We're going to put it on our calendar. We're going to maintain the passion for that and we're going to do it in a set amount of time. So let's look at each aspect of SMART and how that can help you.

Specifically, what is it that you want to accomplish? What is it exactly? What is your goal? Be precise and take away ambiguity. In other words, if someone were to read your goals, they would have no doubt what you're trying to accomplish and begin the statements, I will. Next, measurable.

If you cannot measure whether you have completed it, it's too vague. Measurable means how are you going to get there? How are you going to achieve that goal and objective? What steps are you actually going to take? So at the end of the day, you can tick off the box and break the task down into measurable milestones along the way. In doing that, I want you to be able then to transfer it to your calendar and calendars are just not about work.

They're about your life. So they have to be attainable and with an attainable goal, where does it fit on that calendar or schedule? You see, where did these steps fit in your daily routine? And if it's not on your calendar, if it's not on your schedule, trust me, it will not get done. Fourth, but really the most important aspect is why is it relevant to you? Why? What's important? What is the motivation behind that? Because if you don't have the motivation, it will not happen.

So you have to be prepared to defend the reason behind it. And if you find that you cannot defend it, it's probably the wrong goal. You need to go back to what it is you really want to achieve.

And last, make sure you set timeframes on this, but also be forgiving in the timeframes because life is going to get in the way and things unexpectedly are going to crop up during the process. When are you going to finish? When are you going to complete these things? And are they unrealistic or are they realistic? So I think it's important that you remember that the best SMART goals consider your strengths and your weaknesses. So when you begin to measure those things, remember that life is going to get in the way.

A SMART goal should stretch you, but a SMART goal should not be out of reach. If you look in your study guide, I've given you an example of a SMART goal. Let's just run through it very, very simply.

My personal application is to improve my health. And you say, okay, Chuck, that's very, very vague. Okay, so let's get specific.

I will gain 15 pounds of muscle through a regimented program that I will undertake under the direction of my personal trainer. That's pretty specific. We know exactly where we're going.

How measurable is it? I will use weights training three days a week at the gym located 1.5 miles from my house. I will meet with Joe who will train me during this particular time and hold me accountable to the task oriented and goals that I'm driven to. Attainable.

When is it going to be on my calendar? Joe and I will meet each Monday, Tuesday, and Friday at 7 a.m. prior to going to work. And I will monitor my weight at the end of every two weeks to ensure that the program that we're working on is working. And if not, I'll make the adjustments.

Why is it relevant? I am not as strong. I've become a couch potato. And so my goal will be to improve my self image and my confidence.

Timely. Since there is a beginning of a new year, I realize that I will need to take some time to use in the next few months to increase my weight and my training. So this is a smart goal example that anybody could use.

Now, if you'll look down in your study guide, I've actually given you a little format that you can use for each day of the week so that you can see that there's other things going on in your life. But that information is plugged in on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. So use one of the formats that we're giving you to focus in on the smart plan that you have personally.

So think about it as an opportunity for your own personal growth and development. Now, I'm sure that this is a lot of information for you. And even though we have tried to break it down, I know you have questions.

What kind of questions do you have? I keep thinking about the whole option of tweaking a smart plan. And I could see for some people, they're going to tweak it so much it becomes ineffective. And for other kinds of people, they're just not going to tweak it at all.

They're going to push through, not hit their goals and quit. So when you talk about modifying a plan, what kind of things are you talking about? Is it a time issue? Or, oh, I set my goals too high? Or what would the tweaking process look like? And how do we keep from over tweaking it? That's an excellent question. Because the first time you do a smart plan, you are going to find that you either overestimated or underestimated.

And let me give you an example. Extroverts have a tendency to be very aggressive with their plans. They have, especially the high I, such optimism that they believe they can do anything.

And so consequently, what happens is we have a tendency as extroverts to plug too much in there. And so what I suggest that you do is to think about three aspects of your life, personally, professionally, and spiritually. And don't make two or three professional goals, two or three personal goals, and five or six spiritual goals, because you're convicted about where you are spiritually.

Make one for each one. And here's something that I think is critical that will help you through this process. Realize that you have to learn to rely on your strengths.

Are there things that you want to clean up in your life? Absolutely. So here's what I would suggest. Make two of those three goals something that your strengths will allow you to push through and achieve.

Make that third goal something that will work in one aspect of one of your weaknesses. Don't try to conquer the weakness all at one time or in 90 days. But the reason I'm suggesting your first objective is 90 days is because that's a relatively short period of time.

So you plug in these goals in a way that say, I can do that, even though I realize there's going to be obstacles, but you minimize that by not over committing. Now, here's the funny thing that I've discovered about introverts. They want to fix everything at one time, because they're not as confident as extroverts.

They're much more focused on competence. So they're going to see more flaws within themselves. And they're their own worst critics.

So I encourage them to stay with three objectives, also a personal, a professional and a spiritual. And with that, there will be much less adjustment, there will be much greater ability to achieve that goal. And here's the one thing that I have to mention.

When we did this first with my group of seminary students, some of them struggled. They readjusted midterm and said, this is more realistic. And you know what, that's okay.

But it was the second and third time that they used the SMART goal approach, that they began to feel the self confidence come forward. So what I would say is, the more you understand your behaviors and mindsets, the more you're going to realize that every plan may need to be tweaked. But if you're an extrovert, it may be tweaking down.

An introvert may be minimizing the number of things that you're trying to accomplish. Dr. Coker, you mentioned that you would recommend starting out by determining a goal for a couple of your strengths, or something involving a couple of your strengths, and maybe only one in your weaknesses. Why would you recommend working on your strengths as an emphasis, rather than working on your weaknesses? That is an excellent question.

Because with our strengths, we have more confidence. And the more confidence we have in pursuing a goal, or an objective, the better chance we have of reaching it. And my purpose in recommending that we use the strengths first, is to get you used to the plan, seeing its functionality, because your strengths will carry you through where your weaknesses may inhibit.

So the purpose of using those strengths is to allow you to not be encumbered, and worried, or have anxiety about accomplishing something. But thinking about the thing, what have you always wanted to do, that you just haven't had time for, or you've been caught up in things. And those are things that are the desires of our heart.

And we know the Lord wants us to have the desires of our heart. So therefore, we can focus on the things that are strengths, to accomplish the desire that God's put in our heart. And if God orders our steps, and He gives us these strengths, then it's something He wants us to pursue.

So I really believe that your insight here is critical for our listeners.