SMART goals are a familiar concept, but have you heard of SMARTER goals? Let’s look at how applying this structure to your goal setting can impact your learning journey and outcomes.
When setting out on a road trip, the most useful thing you can do is find a route to your destination. Your GPS ensures you know exactly where you are and where you want to end up so you won’t get lost along the way.
Using a GPS when goal setting is just as important. Goal setting is a necessary part of anyone’s life and a habit that successful people continuously exercise. SMART goal setting is a technique that helps ensure that you set useful goals in a scaffolded way. While using SMART goals ensures personal success, SMARTER goals go the extra mile to drive yourself, the people around you, and the planet toward a better future.
Before we learn what SMARTER goals are, we have to understand the structure they’re based on.
SMART goals are:
Taking SMART goals a step further, SMARTER goals consider people, the planet, and your values.
SMARTER goals are:
Taking the time to apply goal setting to work life can seem daunting. Often it feels like you have so much to do that you don’t have time for goal setting. Yet this is the time when you need goal setting most. SMARTER goals, by nature, break your big-picture goals into small bite-sized pieces. Simply identify all your workplace goals and use the SMARTER technique to create a steady workflow.
Whether you’re continuing your studies or taking the first step in signing up for a diploma, study life can be a challenging chunk to balance. If you are worried about how you will balance your study, use SMARTER goals to prioritise what’s important to you.
Avoid taking on too much if you will only fulfill your goals superficially. If you know you can be overwhelmed easily, then put structure around one aspect of your life first before moving on to the next.
At the start of your study, it is good practice to create SMARTER goals for each module or subject. They can be quantitative goals, value-based, or qualitative goals; the decision is entirely up to your personal preference. As long as you implement the SMARTER scaffolding, you will ensure your goals are balanced.
Using SMARTER goals to set your long-term personal goals will help you live your best life. When goal setting:
In day-to-day life, you may be confronted with many situations or tasks you didn’t anticipate. Whether you need to cover someone’s shifts at work, come down sick, or have car trouble, you can still use SMARTER strategies to get you through a challenging day.
The more you implement these strategies into your everyday life, the more likely it is to become your habit when facing any obstacle. The best part about SMARTER goals is that they are a real-world solution. They give you forward-thinking values and skills that better equip you for life, study and the workplace. In these ways, SMARTER goals can change your life.
