One of the most important things you can do for your business is to set SMART goals. No, they are not directly related to intelligence, although you probably should be smart to set them (and to run a small business anyways).
The ‘SMART’ in SMART goals is an acronym that stands for:
- SPECIFIC
- MEASURABLE
- ATTAINABLE
- RELEVANT
- TIMELY
They relate to setting fantastic short-, medium- and long-term goals. These goals are intelligent on their own, but they are more effective at helping you set realistic goals that will push you forward to your major successes.
Specific
The first thing in SMART goals is to set specific goals that are in no way particularly vague. When you set your goal, you should always have a specific figure or event in mind.
For example, if you are trying to lose weight, you can’t just be happy (or particularly successful) if your weight goes down by 1 pound.
You need to know how much weight you actually want to lose. This should be specific, such as 25 pounds.
Measurable
In order to do SMART goals effectively, you need to find a way to measure your progress and your steps. If you want to sell more products or services, how will you measure your progress and the sales?
You need to make sure your goal is also measurable and assessable.
In the weight loss example, you can set your goal for losing 25 pounds in 3 months, which comes down to about 8.5 pounds per month, or about 2 pounds per week.
In this way, you can assess your progress on a weekly basis and see how well you are heading towards your goal.
Attainable
This one simply asks: are your goals attainable? If you are too eager, you may end up setting astronomically difficult goals for yourself and then suffer the consequences of not achieving those unattainable goals.
Make sure your goals are practical. For weight loss, even 2 pounds a week is difficult, depending on your starting weight.
But something like 25 pounds per month would be near-impossible and set you up for failure.
Relevant
In SMART goals, you need to make sure your goals are relevant. This means, simply, how do your goals relate to your core business or purpose?
For example, if you are increasing the pop culture topics in your business blog, it may increase visitors, but what does Justin Bieber have to do with pool chemicals (the product you’re selling)?
Timely
Last in the SMART goals system is to make sure you have a good time period in which you should reach your goals. This will give you a great amount of pressure to set your strategic steps to attain your goal.
If you don’t have that timeframe, and therefore the pressure, then you really don’t have a goal either.
For example, if I just want to lose 25 pounds, but I don’t say in what timeframe, then I possibly have my whole life to lose it. This means that I will probably never start and therefore never achieve any goal.
SMART goals for your business
In order to help achieve successes in your business, you need to make sure you have great goals. This will help you boost your small business team’s performance.
And one of the best ways to have great goals is to have SMART goals. These will help you achieve the goals you set yourself in a practical, attainable way and make you a more effective business leader.
