WHY SMART GOALS ARE NOT SMART: 2 essential components required for easier and faster goal achievement
Happy New Decade! I hope that 2020 has begun well for you. This may include having created your personal Vision and goals for the year (in addition to those for work) and be motivated and implementing the plan. Plus, with the optimism of possibilities and potential for a new year, like many people, you may have already made changes, usually involving starting something new and feel excited and positive about the next twelve months.
So far so good. You are ahead of the curve and taking responsibility and control for your success, fulfilment and happiness. However, life happens, and things will throw you (and your team) off course and motivation (and action) could diminish. Your brain will conspire to take the path of least resistance: it is rather lazy and concerned with conserving energy, so does not necessarily want to use its resources on accomplishing new aims or creating new habits and interests. How do you mitigate against this?
1. Know exactly what the goal will give you (your ‘why to’ achieve it)
2. Be emotionally invested in the goal
This is the reason that I am not keen on corporate SMART goals as they miss these two vital elements – and sixteen years success of coaching clients and training others to help leaders create powerful goals backs up what works in the real world with real humans living real, busy lives.
So, if you cannot answer the two questions and do not want your goals badly enough to probably sacrifice doing other stuff instead, prepare for extra challenges. The fun adventure and ride towards achieving your outcomes will be bumpy whether your target has the qualities of a brain-friendly Brighter Thinking goal, or not. The secret of success is to have prepared for this and know what to do when it occurs.