Welcome back again!!! A little more than a week into the new year and how are we feeling. Feeling excited, hopeful and ready to tackle the new year with all the plans and goals that we have written down. Yes, our new year resolutions.
When did you write down your resolutions or visions for the new year ? I believe most people starts to write down their resolutions at the end of the previous year or beginning of the year. So, like most people I started writing my visions and plans in December, beginning of December to be exact. I started writing down my desires, my plans and what I wanted to achieve in the new year.
I want to share a a mnemonic that I use that has helped for many years when writing my visions. The mnemonic is SMART. It was created in 1981 by George Doran, a consultant who published a paper about using a tool to create and improve chances of succeeding in accomplishing a goal. Here’s what SMART stand for.
S- Specific. Be specific about what you want to accomplish. It should answer question such as the What, Who, When and Where. For example, I will lose 10 pounds in 3 months. I will apply to 10 colleges for bachelor’s degree or I will apply to this particular college by January for my Master’s program.
M- Measurable. You have to have a way to measure your progress. You can measure your progress by creating milestones of what tasks will need to be accomplished at a particular time.
A- Achievable/ Attainable. This helps you create steps in how you will achieve your goal or vision. For example, you want to lose 10 pounds. You have to start by going to the gym 1-2/week and workout for at least 30-45 mins per session. You can also say, I choose to start eating healthy, cut out sugar from your diet or stop drinking soda. I’m clearly using myself as examples for my weight loss goals but these are steps to achieve goals.
R-Relevant/Realistic. How realistic are you with your goal? How relevant is it with your life? You can say you want to lose 50 lbs in 3 months, is that really realistic and how does it for into your current lifestyle. We have to be realistic for us to be able to achieve and materialize our goals and visions.
T- Time bound. Set a target for when your goal will be accomplished. It’s great if your goal can be accomplished within a year but sometimes it may need a couple of years to accomplish your goals. For example, go to college and obtain my bachelor degree in 4 years is both realistic and time bound. It is not any different than setting a goal to lose 10 pounds in 3 months.
So there you have it. My template to writing my new year visions and goals. If you have any other template or ideas that you use in writing your goals and visions, please share them below. Always in Love. Yemmy
