Goal Setting: Characteristics 1
Good morning. This is Leading Right and I am glad to be your host again this morning. I am Abiodun Fijabi.
Let us move ahead in our treatment of goals today as we discuss the characteristics of goals. It is very likely you have heard of Smart goals before. You need not worry if you have not. You are just like me: There are many things I do not know too. But I am ever eager to learn new things that I consider useful in my journey in life. That I am sure want to do as well. For now, it is just enough that you can spell the word, SMART. S…M…A…R…T. You got it! And that is smart! The SMART goals were made popular by a gentleman by the name of Paul J. Meyer. Paul is the founder and president of Success Motivation Institute. The word SMART is an acronym with S standing for Specific, M for Measurable, A for attainable and actionable, R for realistic and T for Tangible. Let’s go over that again. You can say them after me or better still write them down. Let’s go. S for Specific, M for Measurable, A for attainable and actionable, R for realistic and T for tangible. Good. These five words have been used in the last decade or two to characterize the goals a leader needs to give his vision impetus for success. You will do well to learn them and better still use them as you chart for yourself a place in history.
We shall treat the first characteristic this morning and I am going to start by asking you a question. How would you react if someone were to say to you, “My goal is to travel?” You certainly would want more information. At least, for a start, you want to know where he is traveling to. I am sure you will feel the same way if he were to say, “My goal is to become an important person.” That also is vague. Just as “I want to be great.” What you are looking for is some specificity. You want the person speaking to you to be specific about his or her goal. Otherwise, their statements would be confusing and there may be a breakdown in communication between the two of you. That is exactly what vague goals do – they confuse you and others and may lead to a communication breakdown between you and your vision. Vague goals stand no chance of creating the energy you need to drive yourself towards your vision. They provide you no enthusiasm and you can as well bid your vision a farewell as long as you cannot be specific in your goals.
Dear listener, go for specific goals. Specific goals are usually clear and practical and they define the outcome or result you are out to achieve. Do, not just say, “I want to be a leader”. Be specific the kind of a leader you want to be. Say something like, “I want to be a pastor with enormous influence on my congregation and the society.” Say something like, “I want to become a senator with a passion for the people and with excellent voting records.” Say something like, “I want to be a business leader, owning companies that produce excellent products and meet the real needs of people.”
So, listener, do your goal a favour, make it specific.
Let us move ahead in our treatment of goals today as we discuss the characteristics of goals. It is very likely you have heard of Smart goals before. You need not worry if you have not. You are just like me: There are many things I do not know too. But I am ever eager to learn new things that I consider useful in my journey in life. That I am sure want to do as well. For now, it is just enough that you can spell the word, SMART. S…M…A…R…T. You got it! And that is smart! The SMART goals were made popular by a gentleman by the name of Paul J. Meyer. Paul is the founder and president of Success Motivation Institute. The word SMART is an acronym with S standing for Specific, M for Measurable, A for attainable and actionable, R for realistic and T for Tangible. Let’s go over that again. You can say them after me or better still write them down. Let’s go. S for Specific, M for Measurable, A for attainable and actionable, R for realistic and T for tangible. Good. These five words have been used in the last decade or two to characterize the goals a leader needs to give his vision impetus for success. You will do well to learn them and better still use them as you chart for yourself a place in history.
We shall treat the first characteristic this morning and I am going to start by asking you a question. How would you react if someone were to say to you, “My goal is to travel?” You certainly would want more information. At least, for a start, you want to know where he is traveling to. I am sure you will feel the same way if he were to say, “My goal is to become an important person.” That also is vague. Just as “I want to be great.” What you are looking for is some specificity. You want the person speaking to you to be specific about his or her goal. Otherwise, their statements would be confusing and there may be a breakdown in communication between the two of you. That is exactly what vague goals do – they confuse you and others and may lead to a communication breakdown between you and your vision. Vague goals stand no chance of creating the energy you need to drive yourself towards your vision. They provide you no enthusiasm and you can as well bid your vision a farewell as long as you cannot be specific in your goals.
Dear listener, go for specific goals. Specific goals are usually clear and practical and they define the outcome or result you are out to achieve. Do, not just say, “I want to be a leader”. Be specific the kind of a leader you want to be. Say something like, “I want to be a pastor with enormous influence on my congregation and the society.” Say something like, “I want to become a senator with a passion for the people and with excellent voting records.” Say something like, “I want to be a business leader, owning companies that produce excellent products and meet the real needs of people.”
So, listener, do your goal a favour, make it specific.
posted by Abiodun Fijabi at 1:52 PM
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