Don't just set goals, make them smarter. By Deb Bixler Updated September 20, 2016 Anyone who works from home probably k...
Don't just set goals, make them smarter.
By
Deb Bixler
Updated
September 20, 2016
Anyone
who works from home probably knows how important it is to set goals.
Many
do not realize though that when working at home it is even more
important than ever to have a
SMARTER
stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Timeliness,
Evaluation, and Reevaluation.
The
first part of SMARTER goal setting is the S- be specific in your
goals. Don't set vague goals or else you'll be prone to saying you
completed your goal when you didn't really accomplish anything. The
more specific, the better.
The
M means to make sure your goals are measurable. If you can't measure
your goal then how can you say whether or not you actually completed
it? Instead of saying "Work on Project A" make it a goal
to "Spend two hours on Project A." Time goals are
extremely easy to measure.
Make
sure your goal is attainable. If you can't actually attain your
goal, then you're just going to bring yourself down when you fail.
It's important that you set goals that you can actually accomplish
so that you're not ruining your morale.
Your
goals should also be relevant to the project you're working on. It's
okay to have a few goals for another project, but the majority of
your goals should be focused on the main project you need to
accomplish.
Making
progress on another project is good, but not if it comes at the cost
of not making progress on the more important project.
Make
sure your goals are timely. Don't set goals for ages down the road.
Instead, set smaller goals more frequently. If your goal is to
finish Project A by the end of the month, then that gives you plenty
of room to slack off.
But
if you have smaller goals throughout the month, you won't be able to
slack off. So instead of setting one large goal, set smaller, more
frequent goals.
Making
Your Goals SMART-ER
Evaluate
your goals periodically. All corporations have written business
plans with goals that they review every quarter then at year end.
Your
goal period determines when to do the first evaluation. If quarterly
is appropriate then do so, if monthly is better then do it then. But
the point is a goal is useless without evaluation, then
reevaluation!
At
the end of your goal period, whether it's the end of the day, week,
or month, you also need to reevaluate the goals you set.
Did
you accomplish all of them?
If
not, figure out why not. Was it a problem with the goal itself or
was it a problem with your work habits? What can you do to ensure
you hit all of your goals next time?
If
you follow this path of SMARTER goal setting, then you'll see a huge
increase in your productivity.
When
you don't have someone looking over your shoulder every day, it's
very easy to slack off.
With
these goal setting methods you'll be able to hold yourself
accountable. Trust me, you'll be glad you started using this method
of goal setting.
Deb
Bixler is a direct sales trainer who used a party plan business to
her corporate job position. She now teaches wanna-be direct
sellers how
to start a party plan business and
work at home.
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