A SMARTY Method for Achieving Your Goals

The Corporate Bitch, the podcast that transforms female corporate executives into powerhouse leaders by showing them how to shed the challenges and overwhelm along with any fear, insecurity, self-doubt, and negativity holding them back. I'm your host, Bernadette Boas of Ball of Fire Coaching, bringing you powerhouse experts each week to share tips, advice, and sometimes tough love that will allow you to create the riches in your work and life you deserve. So let's do this. Today we are going to get you set up for a great new year by really focusing on the goals that you have and what you need to do in order to achieve them. So we are going to talk about why goal setting is critical for both your personal and professional life, uh, what the benefits are to you some dos and don'ts as well, and more importantly, walk you through a SMART process for you to be able to turn your dreams into reality. So the purpose of this conversation is going to be all about getting you to feel confident and empowered and just really, um, organized around what it is that you want to be achieving. In the new year. And why I find this really important of a subject is because of the fact that by January 15th, roughly, people have already given up on their new year resolutions. Oftentimes it's simply because of the fact that they really haven't turned their dreams into an actionable plan. And that's what the SMART methodology— and that's what I want to talk to you about today. All right. Um, Brian Tracy has always said that goal setting will do more to help you achieve the things you want in life than anything else you've been exposed to, simply by setting goals. So why, and you know, why is this so important and what statistics back up what it is that we're going to talk about today? Well, I have found even in my own experience that I would say 80+ percentage of people have no goals. So there was a time when I was doing a lot of speaking engagements and it was all around time management, productivity, goal setting, achieving success at work and at home. And I would ask the room full of people, you know, Can you show me with a show of hands how many of you have goals? Now, I would say, just like statistics say, um, 82%, but I would say a good number of the room would raise their hands and say, yeah, I have a goal. However, a good majority of them, with my next question, would have to, you know, put their hands down because my next question was, all right, so how many of you have those goals written down on paper, not just in your head? And a good majority of the hands would come down. So my next question is, all right, so how many of you who have them written down actually use them each and every day? Each and every week, even each and every month. And a very small percentage, I would say anywhere between 3% and 5% of the room, would all of a sudden, you know, be the only ones left raising their hand. Everyone else, you know, is dropped down. Statistics say that 82% of the people do not have goals. 14% have goals, but they're just in their head. 3% have them written down, and only 1% actually act on them. And if you look at that progression of, of someone who doesn't have goals to those that do and they take action on them, not only does the, you know, the percentage gets small, but the amount of benefit and the amount of even quantitative, let alone qualitative results are being left on the table. And what I mean by that is the fact that The 14% with goals, but they don't have them written down. If they did, they would be able to achieve 10 times more than just kind of keeping them in their head. And I don't know about you, but I don't do a good job mentally tracking everything that I need to be doing, why I need to be doing it, when I need to do it, and what is the outcome, what's the deadline, what are the results I'm looking for from that. Laundry list of things that need to get done. So I don't, I don't know, and I'd love to hear from people who have. I don't know how people can actually pursue their goals with enough specifics and enough details and enough actionable plan to where they just have it in their head. Now, excuse me, those that have written goals those 3%, as far as the statistics are concerned, the 3% that do have goals, they are able to achieve 30 times more because of the fact that they have them written down and, and they're taking action on them. So I want to kind of convince you today, quite honestly, I want to convince you today that if you've never been a goal setter, that you become one. If you're a goal setter but you don't necessarily Um, stick to them. I want to talk to you about that because that's a neat— there's easy solutions for both of those things. And if you're one that does have your goals on paper, does have a plan, is acting on them, but is struggling to achieve them, I want to talk to you about that too. All right, so that's what we're going to get into during this conversation about goal setting to riches. Excuse me. So what is a simple process for you to take your dreams, turn them into goals, into action plans and results? Well, many of you probably have heard, at least at some point in your work or life, of the SMART methodology. The reason why I love this methodology is because I'm big on frameworks and methodologies and processes. It keeps us organized. It keeps us feeling somewhat secure and comforted that if I follow this prescribed method, that I, you know, I'm putting my best effort into it. And then I have to deal with the mental games that come with it. But if I get the tactical down into this process, um, and I'm actually paying attention to it and taking action on it, well, That's a huge step forward. And then again, you just have to then deal with the ups and downs that just come with life, quite honestly. And we all have them, no matter how organized, no matter how goal-driven, no matter how action-driven we are, we're still going to have those days when we get up and just want to give up, want to throw our hands up, want to just, you know, fall victim to the fact that it's hard, it's slow. You know, it can be It can be painful because we have to get uncomfortable. And most of the time when we have goals that we really want to achieve, we have to get uncomfortable. So methodologies, frameworks, processes are all good to at least take care of that big chunk of us not being organized or not being concrete or not being specific in regards to how we're going to go about. Living the life that we want and having the things in our lives materialistically, not materialistically, personally, you know, externally. And so it just gives us a big chunk of what it is that we need to move forward. So I want to get into what that SMART methodology is with my own little tweaks because I actually call it SMARTY goals. S-M-A-R-T-Y goals. And I'll walk through each of those, and if you should need to want to write it down, then feel free to do so. But you don't have to do it if you're listening to this in your car or on a walk. Just come back to it, grab your journal and pen, and plan to even do it over the next, you know, week to 2 weeks, because that'll kick you off into this new time that we're going into called a new year. So, um, all right, so let's get into this. And keep in mind, once you learn this process, and it's gonna, it could take you time, it could take you initially a good chunk of time to actually think through what we're gonna discuss and then feel comfortable and confident that you have them defined in such a way, in the SMARTY way, that you are actually gonna be able to get results from it. But if you stick with it, And if you continue working them, whether that is daily, weekly, monthly, then you'll find that it then becomes almost like a 5-minute exercise that you might be doing, um, once in big chunks, meaning at the beginning of the year, maybe at the end of each quarter, mid-year, whatever the case might be. But then we always have to have kind of micro goals. Based on our big goal. And those could be updated and changed and revised daily, weekly, very frequently. So this methodology becomes almost natural that you could do it in your sleep once you actually stick to it and put it to, put it to work, put it to practice, and put it to revealing what it is and how powerful it can be for you. All right. So SMARTIE, let me first highlight what each of those, um, uh, acronyms or what each letter of that acronym means. S is for specific. M is for measurable. A is for actionable. R in my world of SMARTIE is for, um, realistic. T is for time-bound and Y Y, I'm gonna leave, I'm gonna leave, uh, until we get there. All right, but consider what does Y stand for in this methodology. All right, so grab a journal, uh, think through and kind of work through with me, um, the details of one, one or more of the goals that you have for yourself and see if you can work it into this, into this methodology. So, um, S, specific. You want to be as specific as possible when it comes to you defining a goal. Now, why is that? Well, the simplest, um, example, which many, many, many, many, many majority of you can, can relate to, is typically at the beginning of the year, um, individuals will have a goal around losing weight. And so they'll say, okay, my goal is to lose weight. Well, that is way too general to really kind of put action toward, put measurements toward, put, okay, so when are you gonna, you know, lose this weight, or when do you want to lose it by? So you need to get more and more specific. So you add as much detail to that goal as possible. Meaning, I wanna lose 20 pounds by going to the gym 3 times a week, by watching what I'm eating, and I'd even get more detailed in that, by pulling a group together for accountability and for support. And I'm doing this because of my desire to fit into a dress that I have coming up for a wedding. So, and you can get so more detailed in regards to it than just that. But look at the difference between I just, I want to lose weight to I want to lose 20 pounds by January 15th, by July 15th, so I can fit into a beautiful dress to go to this wedding. And I'm going to do that by doing X, Y, and Z, pulling together a support group, so forth and so on. As much specifics as you can. And a number of the other, other letters of the acronym are going to help you fill that in. However, at first, just do what you can to get as much specifics, much details into what this goal is. Should you say, okay, I'm in corporate, I want a promotion, I— and that's basically your goal in the new year, I want, I want to get promoted. All right, promoted to what? Promoted for what reason? What's your contribution going to be? Why should you be promoted? Why do you want it? What does it look like? What's the title? What's the roles and responsibility? Is it with the same company? Is it not with the same company? So forth and so on. As much, as much detail as possible. So then M being for measurable. One of the biggest challenges many of my coaching clients have is that they don't put measurements to it, or they'll say, I can't— how do you measure that I want to be happy? How do I measure that, um, you know, I want to, you know, build wealth? Well, everything can be measured. Happiness can be measured. So how many happy days do you have out of the month versus how many, you know, unfulfilled, sad, depressed days do you have? So get creative as far as how can you measure the qualitative as much as the quantitative. But going back to the two examples, so you want to lose weight, okay, we mentioned 20 pounds. So that's the 20 pounds. That's how you're going to measure it. Other measurements, I'm going to get to the gym 3 times a week. Okay, so 3 times a week, at the gym is a measurement. I want to be able to run, or how about walk, 10,000 steps a day. All right, so there's your measurement. Uh, I want to— even that 20 pounds, you could break down to, that's going to be by July, but I want to lose 5 pounds a month over the next whatever. So then you're able to track to the 5 pounds, of which measurements— the beauty of measurements is They give you that target. They, they give you, you know, what it is that you're reaching for. And they give you the status, the progress. Now, some of those, some of those statuses will be that you didn't make progress. Maybe you went backwards a little bit, but that's okay. Now, you know where you are and what you need to do in order to continue moving. So you do achieve your goal. So measurements, you want to get as many as possible. That are relevant. I don't need you to go stretching and creating and kind of overwhelming yourself, but give yourself some good measurements that will keep you on track and accountable. Now, I mentioned accountability because that is the number one reason why 80-plus percentage of people don't have their goals and/or written down. Is because they don't want to be held accountable. What if I don't meet that 5 pounds? I'm never going to meet the 20 then. What if I don't walk 10,000 steps today? So, you know, if I continue doing that, I'm never going to reach my goal. They kind of use it as an out as far as, you know, why they're going to give up is because they're not hitting on those measurements. So what I would stress for you in that regard is create the measurements, time them out, and we'll talk about the T in a minute. But then expect that you're going to have really good days. You're going to walk 15,000 steps or you're going to lose 7 pounds. And you may just have, and you probably will, setbacks, which then all you really need to do there is say, okay, what do I need to catch up? But I'm not gonna give up. 'Cause giving up on your goals are giving up on you. And you deserve not to give up on yourself. All right? So that was the M. A is actionable. So we're gonna turn these goals into action plans. I wanna lose weight. Okay, so what are the actions I need to take? Everything from, I need to buy a new pair of sneakers, need to buy some gym clothes, need to buy, a gym membership, maybe. Uh, I need to, you know, clean out my refrigerator of the foods that I don't want to be eating over the next 6 months. I need to come up with a new grocery list that I'm going to use as part of this goal that I have. So you're going to just list out all the actions that you need to be taking in order to kickstart into pursuing and achieving your goal. And then of course you're going to prioritize the ones that are most relevant now versus something that you might be doing a month from now, 2 months from now, 3 months from now. All right. And if you want any, uh, tips, if you want to discuss kind of time management type of aspects to what we're talking about, then feel free to reach out and have a call with me. You can do that at um, coachmebernadette.com/discoverycall. All right, so actions is just— we're looking to put together an action plan that you're going to be able to follow as you go and pursue your goals. I'm gonna move myself away. Okay, so, um, where are we? R, realistic. Now you might see relevant out there, you You might see a number of other Rs. I like realistic because I wanna be sure you're set up for success from day one. Using the example of, we'll use both money and the promotion. I'm sorry, diet and the promotion. So using the diet, are you being realistic about the fact that you can lose 20 pounds over the next 6 months. Have you done that before? Are you good at regimenting yourself? Do you like going to the gym? Do you like to run? Do you like to diet? Um, do you like to take some of the kind of restrictions and compromises and sacrifices you need to make in order to achieve this goal? Now, I'm not saying you should already be comfortable. You know, a lot of our— most of our goals have to to make us uncomfortable. So you might not have ever lost, you know, lost a tremendous amount of weight or been consistent going to the gym or being good with a diet. At the same time, doesn't mean you can't. You just need to make sure that you're being realistic about what it is that you're about to pursue and want to achieve. Because again, you don't want to set yourself up for failure. So what you might say to yourself is, Yeah, 20 is very realistic. I've lost more than that before, or I've lost it, and I'm very comfortable adjusting my schedule to— so I can get to the gym. However, if you're not, then say, okay, you know what, I think I'm gonna shoot for 15 pounds by July, and I'm gonna revise that so I don't give up on myself too soon, and therefore revise it. Revise it, and that doesn't have to be day one. That could be as you're getting into your first, second, third week, you're all of a sudden realizing, you know, I'm not being very consistent and I need to make a few mental changes or calendar changes, um, scheduling changes in order for me to actually be able to accomplish this. So go ahead, make those changes. Don't give up on them, just make the changes. Okay. All right. So, um, that is R being realistic. Let's talk about the promotion though, because I told you we talk about both. So where I see this a lot, being that I, um, I'm an executive coach, so I work with a lot of corporate professionals, and why I like realistic is I'll have many, many clients that will say to me, I'm a manager now, I want to be a director, or I'm a director and I want to be a VP, or I'm a VP and I want to be an EVP or a senior VP. All fine and good. But the first question I'm going to ask you is, is it realistic? Is— I want you to be thinking about, because you're not answering to me, but I want you to be thinking about, is it realistic for me in my current position to go to the position, get the promotion that I'm looking for that is going to take me to that particular level or title or role and responsibility? And what do I need and what do most people need in order to achieve that role? And therefore, is it realistic that I can go from where I am today to getting that promotion over the next whatever time bound you put on it? Maybe it was 6 months, 12 months, 18 months. And again, it's not as if that can't be a reality. It's more so, okay, if it is a little skewed to where that's typically not the path most people take, I'll be the first one to say, well, heck with what most people do. You do what you do. I mean, I certainly have done it over and over again throughout my career. However, Do you have— going back to actions, measurements, and specifics— do you have the plan in place that will allow you to not do the normal, not be the average? So do you have what it is that you need to get to that level that maybe isn't the typical route, but that's the goal that you have for yourself? So is it realistic in what it is you're going to be able to do, the supporters you have, the mentors and advocates you have, the training that you can get, so forth and so on. And then you can answer yes or no, make changes, make revisions, or stick with it. Okay? So that's why I like R for realistic. It just gets you focused on making sure that you're set, set up for success from day one. All right. So then we have T, which is time-bound. You'll hear many people say, you know, a dream without kind of a due date— or I'm sorry, a goal without a due date is just a dream or a wish. And I would have to agree with that, you know. So if you were to come and have all the details that we've been talking about when it comes to losing weight, but you can't answer by when, so you don't have like a milestone, you don't have an end date, you don't have that pressure point, that target. Well then, okay, so you're going to lose 20 pounds when? Like next year? In the next 3 years? You know, you're going to get that promotion when? In the next month? In the next year? In the next 5 years? It leaves it very, very, um, fluffy. It leaves it unrealistic if you can't put a timetable to that goal and that dream. Okay, so come up with a timetable of when you want to achieve. And of course, they're not all going to be on the same timetable. Say you come up with, you know, 1 to 2 goals for this new time period. One's fitness, maybe one's, you know, health, one's work, work-related, you know. Of course, the goals, the timetable of those goals won't be the same. So just, you know, understand that and set the time that then turns this goal into a realistic, actionable, measurable, specific goal. Okay, come up with that timetable. The same is going to be true, the same is going to be true that when you come up with the ultimate target, say it's July, but then there's milestones between now and July. Well, those milestones have dates attached as well to them. You know, that first 5 pounds you want to lose, when is that? Getting to the gym, when is that? Buying new sneakers, when is that? You know, pulling together an accountability group, by when? So all of those also need to have times attached to them or dates attached to them. So again, you have something that then gets you very structured, organized, and managed as far as what it is you want to do to achieve your goals. Okay, lastly is why, and I told you I was going to leave that to the end, not disclosing it when we explained what the SMART acronym meant. But what do you think Y stands for? So you have these SMART goals that then I put a little spice on them and said, all right, we're gonna turn them into SMARTIE goals. And that last Y is critical, is everything, is the secret sauce of you achieving your goals. And what would you say it was? So I will give it to you. Y is for you. Without you being invested, without you getting uncomfortable, without you making those sacrifices and compromises and, and, you know, adjustments that are needed, without you, you know, really kind of going all in on your goals, without you, without that why, there are no goals. There are dreams, and we can go to sleep at night and let, you know, sugarplums dance in our head, but they won't be tangible results that you achieve at work or at home. So that why is absolutely critical that that is worked on as much as your actual goals are worked on. But what does that mean? That means what I mentioned at the very beginning. It means we're all going to have high days and low days, happy days and sad days. Joyful days and angry and frustrated days. And so every day working to ensure that your mindset, you are, you know, in a place where you are optimistic and confident and feel empowered. You might be tired and frustrated and might be hard and you might be uncomfortable, but your mindset is to the point where you're like, Despite all that, I'm gonna push through or overcome and keep going. Or you might even say, and this is also a critical element of why, you might say, you know what, I'm gonna lay off my goal for the, for the day or the next couple days or the next hour, and I'm just going to give myself a break. I'm going to give myself some self-care. I'm going to stay on track. I'm going to keep with my goal. I'm not giving up on it, but at the same time, I need a break. I'll give you a, for instance, when it comes to the, when it comes to the weight nutrition goal, is I tend to be a Monday through Saturday goal achiever, goal pursuer, let's call me, uh, when it comes to anything nutrition, fitness, health. I just feel that I need kind of a a celebration day. I need a— I don't want to call it a cheat day because I look at it as, you know, I do— if I do well Monday through Saturday, Sunday's my reward day. And therefore I'm going to either relax and, you know, not push myself as hard. I'm going to, you know, relax when it comes to the diet, the nutrition, the meal plan that I've put you know, for myself. I might relax when it comes to the fitness plan that I might have for myself. So you come up with yours, but just know that when it comes to why, it's everything that you need for yourself to continue to feel empowered, continue to feel confident and optimistic and determined and persistent and focused and clear and determined to achieve your goals. We all are going to acknowledge that we're going to have those low days and high days. And yet our why is never going to be sacrificed. We're not going to give up on ourselves and, you know, just turn what, what our dreams are into just wishes. We want to turn those dreams into goals, goals into action plans, action plans into results. And by doing that, we're taking care of our why in every respect. Okay. All right. All right. All right. So what did you take from that? What did you write down? Or what are you thinking about in your head as far as how can you take your own personal goals and turn them into SMART goals to where you have an action plan at whatever time and day and date you decide to start acting on them but it's a plan that will keep you on track and achieving everything that you deserve in this, in this one life that we have to live that goes really, really fast. But if you need to talk through any part of this with me, then feel free to book some complimentary time. It's all about you at coachmebernadette.com/discoverycall. And let's work through what, what are those goals that you have? And maybe they are very wishy, but we'll get them very concrete. What are those challenges that you have on that why, on you, so we can get you some tips and strategies to just keep moving forward and turn this into a fantastic new year. All right. And visit sheddingthecorporatebitch.com and leave your comments, leave a review, go to Apple Podcasts or YouTube and also leave your reviews. And let other powerhouse women just like you find the show and join in on the conversation. Thanks for joining me this week, and be sure to check out all of our episodes at sheddingthecorporatebitch.com. See you soon, bye.