Resolutions vs. Goals

Can you believe it?  Here we are just a couple of days away from the arrival of Baby New Year and the ushering in of 2012.  I can’t believe we’re at a new year again already!  I swear, the older I get, the faster time seems to go by.  Can someone please just put the brakes on for a year or two. LOL

With the impending arrival of Baby New Year, you know what time that means is also here, right?  No, I’m not talking about the new challenge, but that’s right around the corner, too!  (Be sure to check back on Sunday for all of the details and to sign up!) What I’m talking about are the dreaded New Years’ Resolutions.  You know, those things most people make and then break within a week or two.  Guilty!  Been there, done that more times than I care to remember or admit.

I finally came to realization several years ago that resolutions just don’t work for me.   I usually set them to be too vague.  I set too lofty of goals and quickly became overwhelmed.  Or, I set them to be a year-long project and I just got busy, lazy, or (insert excuse of choice here).

I realized that since resolutions didn’t work for me, I needed to figure out something that would.  So, I looked toward my workplace.  If I don’t mind saying so, I’m really good at job.  I looked at how I accomplished things at work and tried to come up with a similar way to incorporate that methodology into my personal life as well.  I realized setting several short-term goals more often would be a much better fit for me.   I even borrowed from some past projects I worked on and decided that any goals I would set for myself needed to follow the S.M.A.R.T. goal setting principle.  If you aren’t familiar with S.M.A.R.T. goals, here’s the rundown of how it works.  Goals must be:

• S pecific – What do I want to accomplish?  Do you want to lose weight?  If so, how much?
• M easurable – How will I track my progress or know when I’ve reached my goal?
• A ttainable – Is this goal something I can actually finish within the specified time frame?  Perhaps your goal is to run 100 miles per month.  If you’re a seasoned runner, this could very well be an attainable goal.  However, if you’re a novice runner, then it probably wouldn’t be as attainable.
• R elevant – Is this goal something I really care about completing?  If it’s not something you care about, then it’s not something that will keep you motivated to finish and complete.
• T imely – Set a time frame for whatever goal you set for yourself.  If there isn’t a time set, it becomes far too easy to procrastinate.  Setting the time frame gives us a clear end date we can work toward to help stay on track.

Now, some folks will say that S.M.A.R.T.E.R. goals are even better than a S.M.A.R.T. goal.  It’s all of the same criteria outlined above as well as these two additions:

• E valuate – During the whole goal process, we need to evaluate to see if we’re staying on track or if there are tweaks we need to make.
• R eward – Don’t forward to take time to reward yourself along to way as a small way to help keep yourself motivated to continue.

Do you make resolutions, or are you more like me and set goals?  Are you planning to set any for the new year beginning Sunday?  Leave us your comments below and let us know your plan.

Tags: featured, goals, New Year's resolution, resolutions, SMART goals

Category: Mel, MIND IT, The Sisterhood