04 Jan SMART, But be more Specific
Being Smart Starting 2020
In a meeting with my goals group yesterday I presented six of my goals for January 2020. The goals were fairly well thought out and, if I say so myself, pretty SMART goals to my thinking. What is a SMART goal? A SMART goal means the goal is: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant (or realistic), and Time-bound. For example one of my goals was to: Lose 10 pounds in 2020, and 5 pounds by July 4th. It seemed SMART to me! I even got into a little of the breakdown of getting there by the end of 2020 … to lose 5 pounds by July 4th!
What does that mean?
The ‘goal’ was barely out of my mouth when one of the four members of the group said, “What does that mean?” I repeated the goal again, thinking maybe he did not hear it! “Yeah, but you can lose 5 pounds by July 4th and gain back 7 by August 1st!” The words were clear, the intent was not! I explained that I meant to sustain-ably lose the weight and adapt a new level of how I was being. Then I could STAY at the reduced weight! How was I going to lose the weight?
Only three of the four guys were there at the time, and the other ‘combatant’ said that he was on a 21 day fast. He was fasting from solid food. He had dropped 5 pounds in less than a week on his liquid-only fast – a ‘non-diet’ that was purposeful, but NOT focused on weight! My SMART goal wasn’t as SMART as I had thought it was!
C-ing Clearly
Our goal group gives each of the 4 members 15 minutes to discuss their goals, success and difficulty in chasing it, and solicit (if they choose) feedback on the process or results. That allows us to meet for an hour and maximize the time. You have probably heard the phrase “the devil is in the details!”. That conveys the thought that a plan can be good but fleshing it out can have some hurdles along the way, in specific steps. There was the devil for me! I knew what I meant, but my fellows did not!
I thought I was going to spend most of my 15 minutes explaining what losing 10 pounds meant!
As it turned out I didn’t need very much time. I just needed to make sure that with my Consciousness of the need for change I had Clarity! Conveying clarity so the group could BELIEVE my Commitment could lead to the necessary Consistency! (4 Cs for change!)
I had to make another commitment. “I will review the goal and make it ‘SMART’er! And I will redistribute my smarter goal to the guys within the week.” They had battered me with questions and chuckled about dropping 5 pounds in a week.
Review, Rethink, Revise!
Still, I had to agree that my goal needed some work. I needed to hone in on some more of the specifics, further develop aspects of measuring the weight loss and redefine what achieving the goal would truly look like! Maybe what I had to do was actually: Review, Rethink, rethink Again, and THEN Revise! Sometimes that is just how it is! Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” SO we examine (Review, Rethink and Revise!) with the intent of making this life worth living!
The ONE THING!
We have covered a lot of territory today! And, yes, my goal is growing smarter! Isn’t it amazing how ‘intertwined’ all the different aspects of our life and how we plan and live it truly are? There are pieces and parts that when they come together make life better and easier. Gary Keller (co-founder of Keller-Williams Real Estate) said it well when he suggested of self-examination. “What is the ONE Thing I can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?” (The One Thing, Gary Keller p106) If you have not read it, DO!
At the start of the year goals and vision are SO important. But it is not setting the goal that matters, but the process of pursuing the goal! It is not the achieving of the goal but rather who we become in the process of pursuing the goal that will impact this and future years!
2020 Vision
So make 2020 a year of FORESIGHT! Did you know that all 50 states require a rear view mirror on a car? And yet, the rear view mirror is about 1% the size of the windshield! You are supposed to be looking ahead more that looking back! Live 2020 that way! Glance back, and look forward! Don’t try to fly solo. Share your vision, enlist the aid of a friend or a coach to help you make 2020 a NEW year, not a repeat of 2019. Make SMART goals. Base those goals on a 4C approach – get CONSCIOUS of what needs work, get CLARITY of all that the change means and will require, get COMMITMENT from yourself and others who need to help, and develop CONSISTENCY through accountability. Have a great NEW year! …Just be more specific!
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