E-Class #04: How to Create, Manage and Achieve Your Goals (Worksheets)

Checkpoint:
  • You understand the importance of committing goals to paper.
  • You have identified the areas of your business where you need to set goals.
  • You practice using autosuggestion and visualization regularly - or at least before important meetings, presentations and sales calls.

There's no point in setting goals unless they're SMART, because SMART goals have the highest probability of being achieved.

In this E-Class you're going to take some time to set a series of personal and business goals that will act as milestones as you work towards achieving your business vision.

Many people set goals, but not everyone reaches their goals. Too often, goals are too vague, or too broad. "I'm going to be a millionaire," "I'm going to be the best parent ever," or "My business is going to make much more money this year." They're big, bold abstract statements that are great for dreaming and visioning, but don't stand a chance of being achieved in a meaningful or tangible way.

Today, you're going to work through a step-by-step process for setting goals that you WILL achieve. How? You're going to learn how to set SMART goals, and get some tools to help you stay on track.

In this E-Class we will cover:

SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time Bound goals.

SPECIFIC goals that describe details and articulate aims are easier to achieve than vague or broad statements.

Ambiguous or incomplete goals will only assist you in achieving ambiguous or incomplete results. Your goals need to be as detailed as possible so that you will achieve the specific results you are looking for.

A specific goal can be easily understood by anyone who reads it; your intention and desired results are clearly detailed and described, and the actions you will take to achieve it have been planned.

Ambiguous Specific
I should lose weight. I will lose 10 pounds in the next two months (that's 2.5lbs per week) by eating more fruits and vegetables and exercising three times per week.
I will work harder this year. I will increase my sales figures by 20% in the next six months by scripting and practicing my closing strategies.

MEASURABLE goals are the only kind of goals that you can actually achieve.

Your goals need to be measurable so you can assess your progress, manage your progress, and know when you have achieved your desired outcome. You can use standard measurements like time, numbers, money and distance.

When goals are measurable, they can be broken down and easily managed in smaller pieces. You can create an action plan and plot the steps towards achieving the goal. You can track your progress and revise your action plan if you need to.

Non-measurable Measurable
I will make more money this year. I will increase my profits by 15% this year by increasing my prices (and value I offer) by 5% each 6 months and selling my audio interviews on ebay.
I will start running this spring. I will learn to run 10K this spring by joining a running training group.

ACHIEVABLE goals have a better chance of being realized because they are grounded in feasibility.

You need to set goals that challenge and stretch you, but you also need to avoid setting goals that are far beyond the reach of your circumstances and skill level. It's great to think big, and dream big, but too many people set goals that are simply beyond their capabilities and wind up disappointed. Goals that are not achievable will only demotivate and disempower you.

On the flip side, setting goals that are too easy to achieve will not help you grow as a person and as a professional. You need to strike the right balance between challenge and reality.

Unrealistic Achievable
I will climb Mount Everest this year. I will begin a one year training program today, and climb to base camp in 9 months from now.
I will make billions of dollars. A million dollars is $2,739.73 per day, and $9,230.77 per week. I will earn 1 million dollars in the next 365 days starting today.

REALISTIC - or relevant - goals make sense and can be integrated into your life and overall business strategy

This is the part where you look at the reasoning behind your goal. It's great to set goals in all areas of your life, but for the most part your goals will collectively achieve a common vision. The goal's action plan can be reasonably integrated into your life, with a realistic amount of effort.

Goals that are not realistic or relevant don't appear to have a logical place in your life or overall business strategy, and can serve to derail you. You want to make sure that all of your efforts are working in a single, focused direction or you may run the risk of going in too many directions, spinning your wheels and never achieving your vision.

Irrelevant Realistic
I will become a better Monopoly player, and win 25% more games. I will spend more time with my family this year by staying at home one night each weekend.
I will become a NASA astronaut. I will start my own on-line business, to compliment my existing business and add another stream, of income, by my birthday.

TIME-BOUND goals give you a frame of reference and keep you motivated.

"To plan it, is to dream it... to schedule it, is to make it REAL. Attach a written timeline!"
Karl Bryan, CEO, Author, International Speaker

Just like any task without a deadline is easy to push off your desk or down your to-do list, a goal without a timeframe will never be achieved. Goals that are not attached to a timeframe are merely dreams or lose intentions.

You need to make sure that the timeframe you set for your goal is realistic and achievable - not too short or too long - and reflects any elements or factors beyond your control that may influence the timing of the outcome. This will keep you motivated and focused, and allow you to check in on and track your progress.

Loose Time Bound
I will join a gym and start an exercise program. I will join a gym by the end of this month and start a regular weekly exercise program.
I will start a new marketing program. I will invest $750 on an online product by the end of this month, and start selling it online by my birthday this year.

The SMART Goal Test

Once you've come up with some goals for your personal and professional life, work through our test to see if they are SMART goals.

When you're creating your goal statements, put them through the following test:

Specific How detailed is this goal?
Can it be more detailed?
Can I be more specific with what I wish to accomplish?
Measurable Can I measure my results over time, distance, dollars or quantity?
How will I measure the results?
How often will I measure the results?
Achievable Is it possible for me to reach this outcome?
Do I have what I need to reach this outcome?
Will I be able to achieve this goal in the short-term or long-term?
Relevant Is this goal consistent with my values and overall vision for my life?
Is this goal a priority for me to focus on right now?
Is this a primary or secondary goal?
Time Bound Have I set a time frame for this goal?
Is it a reasonable time frame?
Is it a manageable time frame?

Here are some examples of SMART goals compared to other goals.

Other Goal SMART Goal
I want to write a book. I will write a book on internet marketing that is at least 150 pages long, and have the first draft completed by January 23rd. I'll commit to writing at least three pages each day (I understand that wealth creation is created before 9am and after 5pm - during the day I earn a living) until I finish.
I want to be really wealthy. I will double my income to $200,000 within 18 months by starting an internet marketing business.
I want to become a millionaire in four months. I will become a millionaire within three years by starting my own small business marketing company and positioning myself as an expert public speaker with engagements worldwide. I will supplement that income by creating a source of passive income.
I am going to do my taxes. I am going to finish my taxes by Friday, and I'll achieve this by spending two hours on them each night until then

You need to review and revise your goals on a regular basis so they have room to grown and change with you.

Goals, like everything in business, have the potential to grow, change and evolve based on circumstances beyond our control. Depending on the length of the goal - daily, weekly, monthly or yearly - you'll want to set up a schedule for reviewing and potentially revising your goals.

Build this review period into your goal setting process - schedule times to review your goals and take stock of your progress. Here's a guideline:

Goal Timeframe Frequency of Review
One Week Daily
Two Weeks Weekly
One Month Weekly
Three Months Monthly
Six Months Monthly
One Year Monthly
Five Years Yearly
10 Years Yearly

Now it's time to work through the goal setting process and create at least 18 SMART goals of your own.

Using the four worksheet packages available here, work through the following steps to create 18 SMART personal and business goals.

TIP: This is a great exercise to have your employees and management work through.

1. Establish Your Personal Values Worksheet
Since you've already worked through a business visioning process, these worksheets will help you to work through a personal visioning process. In the last two worksheets, you can combine the two visions and set your goals in one place.

2. Take a Personal Inventory Worksheet
Using the information you discovered in the Personal Values worksheets, use the Personal Inventory questionnaire to think big about your future and your success. What are you dreams for yourself and for your business?

3. Set SMART Goals
Using the SMART principle described in this E-Class, plus the personal and business visions that you have created, write down three personal and three business goals for each of the following time frames: 6 months, 12 months, 5 years. Remember that these goals should support your personal or your business vision.

4. Create an Action Plan for Each Goal
Now, for each of the 18 goals, create an action plan. This will include steps to take, potential obstacles to overcome, milestones to note, and other information that will help you as you work to achieve the goal.

5. Display Your Goals
Put your goals in a visible place where you can see and be reminded of them on a regular basis. You may wish to place business goals in your place of work, and personal goals on your desk or at your computer.

You've now completed the only envisioning and goal-setting process you will ever need to be successful. Congratulations!

I hope you're getting really excited about the future potential of your business, and the power you have in you to achieve the vision and goals you have set in the last four E-Classes.

We're going to spend two more E-Classes laying the groundwork for your success, and then dive into the marketing strategies that are really going to transform your vision into reality.

Congrats for tuning in,

Gail Benton