One Apple A Day #241
Did you lay out your goals for the new year?
The other day I was reading an article explaining how we came to set the 1st of January as the first day of the year. It happened quite recently. Until the 1500 century, almost every kingdom had its own “start of the year”.
I won’t bother you with the whole story, but the point is that nothing really happens between the 31st of December and the 1st of January. For the universe is a night like anyone other. Though, we all agree that it’s a relevant turning point in our personal stories. A day where we feel ready to start anew, with new goals and objectives.
I do it too. I set my goals.
Believe it or not, I started defining my new year resolutions only three years ago. Before that, I was convinced it was a big waste of time. And somehow I was right. Goals mean nothing if you are not committed to giving meaning to them.
The first time, in 2016, I defined my goals only at the beginning of February. I was studying Robin Sharma work, and I followed his advice. So, I define my five big goals for the year. But, being the first time, I wasn’t really confident about my ability to deliver, so I played safe. I went for five relatively small goals, challenging but not too much.
I nailed them, a few days before Christmas 2016 I completed the fifth one.
I felt so energised and empowered that in 2017 I went bold and big with my goals.
I accomplished none of them or, even worst, I’m not sure if I accomplished them or not.
2017 has been a fantastic year for me. I grew a lot, and I can’t believe how many things I did in only 365 days. Yet, I feel as if I didn’t accomplish my goals.
The reason is that my goals were wrong. They weren’t SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound). They were dreams, desire or actions. Not SMART goals.
One example was the goal to be an author. This is a dream and a behaviour. Not a goal.
A goal is “to publish my first book by the end of the summer”. That’s a definite objective that allows me to create a plan to achieve and measure my progress. By the end of the summer, I will know for sure if I will have achieved it or not.
Are your goals for 2018 SMART?