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New Year’s Eve may be over, but broken New Year’s resolutions are already in full swing. From gym regimens to business objectives, people everywhere are welching on their goals at a breakneck pace.

That’s why we made a resolution of our own: to help you keep yours. To get started, we sat down with 2RM associate Rachel Adams and asked her to show us how to write SMART goals as a way to hone your ambitions in the new year.

Question: What’s the biggest problem people have reaching their goals?

Rachel: Honestly, the biggest problem doesn’t lie with achieving your goal. It’s with setting it. Most people are too quick to develop objectives that aren’t measurable or achievable. When setting benchmarks for yourself, it’s important to choose something you can control. Something SMART. Think “how will I know if or when the goal is reached?” If you can answer that, you’re off to a good start.

Question: What is a SMART goal?

Rachel: A strong home is built on a firm foundation, and the same is true for a good goal. To realize your aspirations, you have to be SMART. SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound.

Specific

  • What do you want to accomplish?
  • Who needs to be included?
  • When do you want to do this?

Measurable

  • How will you measure your progress and completion?

Achievable

  • Do you have the skills to achieve this goal?
  • Is the amount of effort required on par with what you want to achieve?

Relevant

  • Why am I setting this goal now?

Time-Bound

  • What is the deadline?

Question: Do you have a SMART action plan?

Rachel: Absolutely. I always start by making a list of my goals. Don’t worry about trying to make them SMART yet. That can be overwhelming. Just write them out.

From there, move down your list, cutting out the options that don’t meet the SMART criteria and where you don’t think you can revise or improve the goal to include the key components. Don’t be disappointed when you’re left with a shorter list of goals. A few intentional, well thought-out options will get you better results than a lengthy, half-developed list. Once you have your SMART goals in hand, you can get to work to create your SMART action plan.

Question: What would you say to someone who’s worried they lack the expertise or resources to reach their SMART goals?

Rachel: Everything is easier with a partner. If you need help reaching your business goals in the year to come, we’d love to talk. Shoot me an email and let’s make a plan to bring your vision to life in 2020!