I feel like I need to talk a little about goal setting at this point because it’s such a ubiquitous part of any kind of behavior change conversation. But, to be honest, I’ve been avoiding it because I feel like I’m not very good at setting goals, at least “good” goals according to the behavior change literature. Although, as I wrote this post and thought more about my goals, I realized maybe that’s ok.
First, what is a goal? A goal is different from a guiding vision, which I discussed in this post. A vision should be inspirational, grand, unbound by reason even. It can help you figure out what you want to work on and reveal what values you want to guide your life. Goals, on the other hand, while they should align with your values and vision are more specific things you want to achieve. Stepping stones to bridge the gap between the present and what you envision.
The most popular goal setting framework is probably SMART Goals. If you’ve never heard of it, SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-Bound. I thought I wasn’t very good at SMART goals, probably because at an old job I didn’t care very much about I was forced to come up with like five SMART goals every time I had an annual review and I always struggled with it. The fact I didn’t care about the job was probably a big reason, but, as you’ll see, I also have a hard time with the measurable and time-bound aspects of SMART goals.
So what are my goals right now? Well, the top four are probably: 1) Get a new full-time job in sustainability, 2) Feel confident about my appearance on my wedding day, 3) Not feel overwhelmed by life most of the time, and 4) plan a fun and meaningful wedding within our budget (Oh, just wait, I’ll write more posts about my wedding planning later).
Now those aren’t SMART goals. Goal 1 is missing the time-bound aspect (granted the implied timing is as soon as possible). Goals 2 isn’t measurable. Goal 3 isn’t measurable OR time-bound. And goal 4 is a toss up: “fun” and “meaningful” aren’t really measurable, although within our budget is a metric.
However, I do have several sub-goals to work toward those main goals that better fit the SMART criteria. For (1) I have a goal to check job sites every day, apply to every job that interests me as soon as possible after seeing the posting, and do at least one other thing a week to network and/or build my value. For (2) I have a goal to run at least 3 miles a week and get in at least 3 other workouts a week. The exercise goals for (2) also help with (3), but I also have a goal to meditate at least 5 times a week, eat healthy, and catch up with friends/family at least once a week. And for (4) I have all sorts of sub-goals planned out for the next 10 months that I won’t get into here.
A few things worth noting:
- Although I had a basic idea in my head, this is the first time I’ve actually sat down and thought about the four main goals in my life right now, much less written them down, yet I’m still seeing some success meeting them. Although, it will be interesting to see if I have more success after writing this post (May do a follow up in a few weeks)!
- Things like checking job boards, eating healthy, meditating and exercising were things that I just do regularly anyway, so I didn’t even think of them as sub-goals at first.
- I realized maybe I could be pushing myself more since I’m already meeting my sub-goals regularly as a result of my general lifestyle, but also maybe it’s ok that I’m not because I’m pretty happy with the progress I’m making right now.
- Also, you could definitely make the argument that (3) isn’t a goal in the strict sense of the term according to behavior change literature, because it’s not really about achieving something (I already don’t feel overwhelmed by life most of the time). It’s more about maintaining. But, I decided to include it because my mental and emotional health is important to me, and it’s the reason I push myself to exercise, eat healthy, meditate and generally do healthy things.
The point I want to make is that having goals, something concrete and achievable to work toward, is important for growth. But they don’t have to be perfect to be beneficial. Sure, taking a more methodological approach may help you achieve more, but maybe the focus on achievement over maintenance is a drawback of goal setting as a motivational tool. Maybe you’re happy with how things are going and don’t have the energy to push yourself right now. Being able to appreciate that instead of blindly chasing achievement is a valuable skill.
Likewise, some “perfect” goals could be detrimental. For instance, one of my goals is to feel confident about my appearance on my wedding day. A SMART goal in the same vein could be to “lose X lbs by my wedding day.” While I do want to slim down some before then, I don’t want to quantify it by my weight because so much more goes into feeling beautiful and confident than just weight, and ultimately what I want is to feel beautiful and confident. While having easily measurable metrics makes it easier for you to track your progress, and certainly has it’s place, pushing yourself to quantify everything can sometimes cause you to lose touch with what you really want. So, I’m ok with my goals not being SMART if they align with what I really want.
The SMART framework can be a useful tool in many circumstances. It can help you set benchmarks and push you to come up with specific actions to work on things you want to improve. However, you have to be able to recognize where a tool like the SMART framework works for you and where it may be lacking, then modify as needed. That’s not just true for goal setting, but a lot of tools you’ll encounter as you work to improve yourself and the world.
Flourishing 