SMART is an acronym of five elements:

1. Specific
2. Measurable
3. Achievable
4. Relevant
5. Time-based 

What is the benefit?

SMART goals can be applied to any goal to help you accomplish the goal in a specific and measurable way. The SMART method will help you stay focussed and create achievable and realistic goals that you can meet based on a time frame.

Watch the video below if you prefer watching or read the whole article below.

Now let’s talk about each one of them!

1. Specific – 

The first and the vital element of a good goal is being specific when choosing it – whether for your business or personal and professional development. It is good to have a clear vision of what you want to achieve. Visualize it – as it will certainly motivate you.

I have also prepared an example on how to think SMART when choosing a goal. This example is relevant to marketing, but you will get an idea of how to apply it to any goal you choose.

Let’s say – you set up a goal and say, “you want to get more website conversions/leads is not being specific”. Your mind doesn’t know what more means. Instead, say I want to get 20 more website conversions this month from my website as that is more specific. You will have a clear picture in mind about exactly what you want to achieve.

2. Measurable:

A goal should have a metric to measure it. Otherwise, the goal is not precise. The goal of getting 20 more website conversions/leads by the end of this month is specific. 

Now how would you know that you are actually progressing towards your goal?

The answer is – “by measuring it”. As in this case, you are going to measure the website traffic. More website traffic equals more conversions.

Now, let’s take a step back and discuss how much more traffic you need to gain 20 more conversions/leads?

It depends on your website’s conversion rate. For this example, let’ say that your website conversion rate is 5%, which means out of every 100 website users, only 5 of them takes an action that is valuable to your business – filling a contact form, clicking the ‘phone number’ or subscribing to your email newsletter. 

So this means that to gain 20 more conversions, you need to raise your website’s traffic by 400 users. And the metric you need to measure is website traffic.

3. Achievable:

Whatever the goal you have chosen, make sure it is realistic and attainable given the present conditions. You don’t want to set an impossible objective just to quit at a later stage. Instead, set a realistic goal and devotedly work towards it to achieve that goal.

4. Relevant:

A goal should be highly relevant. And the goal we have chosen in the beginning is very important for business growth. Thus it is highly relevant. 

Whatever is the goal you choose, make sure that it’s relevant to your business or yourself.

5. Time-based:

A goal needs to have an end date for it to be time-based. For example, if you want to lose weight, you can’t just say, I want to lose weight. Instead, say I want to lose 2 kgs by end of next month. This way, you are not only being specific but also have an end date that will help you achieve it on time.

 In the end, I want to finish by saying – Whatever is the goal you have chosen, whether it is for personal, professional, or business development, think SMART.