SMART goals don’t work. (SMART is an acronym that guides you to frame better goals, popular in corporate settings). But let’s be honest—most of us can’t even remember what the letters stand for.
Let me share an easier way to set goals…goals you’ll actually accomplish.
A goal needs three things:
Burning Desire (the why)
Time component (why now, and by when)
Action-based (not outcome-based)
If you don’t have a burning desire to achieve something, you won't have the motivation to do the work. So, figure that part out first. And the ones you don’t have a burning desire for—put them on your bucket list for later.
Now, set a deadline. If you don’t know when you want to achieve a goal, then sorry, you just don’t have enough of a desire for it right now. You should be able to see and feel the end. 7-13 weeks is usually a good timeframe to achieve big things. Making sub-goals will help you feel the “achieveability” even more. For instance, if you have a daily goal of 7k steps, set a sub-goal to hit 5k by noon.
Finally, don’t make goals like “get rich” or “win the match.” Winning isn’t a goal, it’s an outcome, says Patrick Mouratoglou (Serena Williams’s coach). Outcomes are usually not in our control. “A better goal is to pump your fist every time you win a point.” A good goal depends only on you. It’s actionable. A series of right actions done consistently is what gets you to where you want to be.
Watch from 3:12 where Patrick explains how to make good goals.
And so, that’s the key: you want to focus on actions, not the outcomes. Your actions will lead you to the outcomes, but if you focus on the outcomes, you won’t get the outcomes. My uncle, a cricket enthusiast, had a theory: a lot of circketers hit 90 runs but get out before they hit 100—why? Because until they reach 90, they are focused on the team and the overall strategy. Once they get to 90, their focus shifts to their personal century.
The Bhagavad Gita emphasizes this repeatedly—focus on the action, not the result. Patrick Mouratoglou's statement, "winning isn't a goal," beautifully summarizes the ancient wisdom of the Gita.
No burning desire? No deadline? No clear actions? Then it's not a goal, it's just a wish.
P.S. If you're ready to take action and achieve your goals, check out QTR, a goal achievement platform I built to make the process easier. Ask me for a discount if you'd like to give it a try!