Making S.M.A.R.T Goals

Prioritizing and Making Goals S.M.A.R.T

Prioritizing involves figuring out which goals are the most important in terms of their value and how soon they need to be accomplished. It is clearly deciding which comes first, second, third, so on. There is an simple technique to prioritizing our goals. Prioritizing is about making choices. Tasks that are most important to us (like socializing with friends, family time, or improving ourselves) often are not urgent. To prioritize effectively you need to be able to recognize what is important, as well as see the difference between urgent and important. The important (or high priority) tasks are the things that help us achieve our long-term goals or can have significant long-term consequences.

Even though at first glance many of the tasks we need to take care of during the day seem equally urgent and important, a closer look highlights their lesser importance in the long run. With good prioritizing skills, you finish the urgent ones as soon as possible so they do not create crises. Then, you focus your attention and try to give more and more time to those important (but not urgent) tasks, the ones that give you the most reward in the long run.

Prioritizing principles can be applied to planned and unplanned tasks. Use the “A”, “B”, or “C” To Do List rule for planned tasks. The “A” List is the most important. The “B” List is done only after the “A” List has been completed. The “C” List comes after both the “A” and “B” lists items are completed. For unplanned tasks, rely on your knowledge and clarity of your goals and your instincts to get them completed.

Goals S.M.A.R.T

A well-conceived goal includes:

1) What you want to do

2) How you’re going to get there e.g. tasks resources

3) How long it’s going to take to get there

Using the SMART acronym can help set meaningful goals:

1) First, a goal should be S = Specific.

Specific (also significant, stretching)

Goals need to be as specific as possible...