SMART Goals: You Are Only as Smart as Your Goals (Part 2 of 3)

(Read Part 1 of 3)

The old saying goes, “Give a man a fish; he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish; he eats for life.”

If your trainer, teacher, mentor, or daddy doesn’t teach you how to set goals, then you need to keep reading.

Another saying – “Aim for the stars. If you miss, you will land in the clouds.”

In my last post, I ended with a mention of the 5 year plan.

LISTEN CAREFULLY: You create the five year plan to ascertain what your one year plan should look like.

Now, we’re talking “the best year of your life”! (That is of course until you get so good at goal setting that you extend the skill set you are about to develop into eternity).

1. Before you grab your pen and write down “where you wanna be’ in five years, learn about how to make your goals SMART!

THIS IS IMPORTANT: Not all goals are created equal. Make your goals SMART!

A SMART goal is Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound.

So, let’s suppose that we might be thinking that our five year goal is to be in better shape or maybe to be a good basketball player. These goals are not SMART. What does being in better shape mean? What is a good basketball player?

These goals will fail you, and you will fail in achieving these goals. They are not specific or truly measurable.

Let’s consider the example of “get in better shape” because for many this is a goal, and an enviable one at that.

A SMART goal in terms of a five year goal to enhance physical fitness could be to complete 20 5k runs throughout that period. It could be to compete in 20 ballroom dance competitions by that time. It could be to bench press and squat a combined weight of 600 pounds. All of these are specific, measurable, attainable (attainability of course differs from person to person), relevant, and time-bound.

I tend to recommend that health and wellness goals are performance based because I generally recommend that people cultivate a lasting wellness lifestyle. It helps to find hobbies and activities that are physically demanding. Share these with your family members, and the whole family’s health will improve.

2. Still got that pen? Now, write down your SMART 5 Year goal.

In the next blog we are going to countdown to 4, 3, 2, and 1 year from the writing of your goal. Soon, we will be able to figure out the things we need to do on a daily basis to be make this year great!

By Billy Lee

Billy Lee is the Trainer/Director at GIT R DONE fitness. You can follow him on Twitter @ApexAlphaTrader.

You can learn more about his health and wellness work on Kairos Athletics and the Wellness Institute for Economic Growth.