Leah Crisler

How to use this effective strategy to level up in life.

As a middle school student, I was introduced to SMART goals as a study planning strategy. The acronym stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound. These five elements are guides to help you record, monitor, and reflect on your accomplishments and progress.

(U): Umbrella Goal

“U” ruins the SMART acronym, but understanding your over-arching goal is essential to crafting a SMART goal. Identify your BIG ultimate goal or vision. Once you have an umbrella goal you are working towards, you can make smaller stepping-stone goals using SMART. One of my umbrella goals is to finish my degree.

S: Specific

What is it you want to accomplish? State your “what” as precisely as possible. “Clean my room” is a vague goal and will be hard to accomplish effectively. Being more specific about what you will accomplish is better. “I will keep my floor clear, my clean clothes put away in my drawers, and not keep any dishes or trash in my room” is a more thought-out statement. I can walk into my room at any time and observe the floor, drawers, and surfaces to see if I stay on track. The first example is too general. I might have “tidy” piles of clothes or neatly stacked dishes near my desk and consider it “clean enough” one day. Specific goals can help you from self-sabotage and challenge you to meet milestones.

M: Measurable

Similar to Specific, SMART goals need to be measurable. If you cannot assess how you are doing, your progress will likely flounder. The specific elements of cleaning my room, such as keeping my floor clear, my clean clothes away in my drawers, and not keeping any dishes or trash in my room, are all measurable. Based on these criteria, I can observe whether or not my room is clean. A more intrinsic goal may be measured differently. Consider ways to measure progress toward your specific goal. Maybe someone close to you can help you notice progress or assess your growth.

A: Achievable

“You can be anything you want to be” is a powerful affirmation, but when crafting SMART goals, you must be realistic. I would love to join the National Guard in my area. However, because of my medical history, I know that that specific and measurable goal is impossible. Similarly, I could aim for a giant bedroom with a circle bed and conversation pit, but that is not possible as a renter. On the other hand, please don’t make your goals so easily achievable that you don’t have to work for them.

I walk my kids home from school every day. Making a goal to “walk five minutes every day” is something I already do. If consistency challenges you (it does me) then flip your goal to focus on that. “Every morning, I will check my planner and meditate before I look at my phone” is a goal I’m more likely to keep than “Go screen-free three days a week.”

One final note on Achievable: Don’t compare your goal to someone else’s “harder” one. It’s not a contest.

R: Relevant

Your goal is relevant if it helps you progress toward your umbrella goal. If your umbrella goal is to improve your grades, a goal related to studying is a relevant goal. The goal is relevant if you can directly or indirectly connect your SMART goal to your umbrella goal.

For my “clean my room” example, a relevant goal would be to sort out old clothes for donation. An indirectly related goal is to commit to reducing my consumption and repurposing items instead of purchasing new ones. This would cut down on the clutter and help me find uses for items I cannot donate.

T: Time-bound

The final ingredient to a SMART goal is Time-Bound. By when do you want to accomplish your goal? How frequently will you assess your progress? Like being measurable, setting a time on your goal gives you parameters to work in. Give yourself a reasonable amount of time to complete. I would give myself three months for my “Clean the room” example. I can quick-clean my room in one weekend, but I want to maintain the tidiness, even when no one is coming over.

Be careful not to make your goal unachievable by giving an unreasonable timeframe. “I will complete my Bachelor’s degree in three months” could be achievable if you only have a few classes left, but I just started my program, so that time-bound goal isn’t reasonable for me. If you need a push to finish or want to challenge yourself more, go ahead and give yourself a punishing deadline. I admire people who enjoy and thrive in high-pressure situations.

Remember, (U)SMART

Whatever you hope to accomplish this year and beyond, I wish you success. I empower you to adapt SMART goals to make this system work better for you as I did. You are accountable to you. If you need to realign your goals in June to fit your circumstances better, do it. The only failure is giving up. Remember, (U)SMART and U can achieve your dreams.

Bonus! Free SMART Goal Worksheet

Check out my shop for this handy downloadable worksheet to help plan your SMART goals.