Submitted by bits-admin on

What are SMART Goals and 
How Do I Set Them?

SMART Goals are effective and help you to succeed at whatever you set your mind to!

When setting a SMART goal ask yourself, is my goal:

Specific? – Did I pick a very small and clear goal?

Meaningful? – Will it be meaningful to you if you can meet this goal? Why will meeting this goal matter to you?

Measurable? – How will I know if I have met my goal? How can I measure success?

Action-oriented? – Did I pick something that clearly involves taking a concrete step?

Realistic? – Did I make sure my goal is doable given everything else in my life?

Time-limited? – When will I do this goal, how often and for how long? Is my goal doable within the next 4-week time frame? 

Example of a SMART Goal

“I will walk the dog three times a week for 15 minutes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.”

This is an excellent “SMART ” Goal because it is small, doable, easily measured, on specific days with a clear action for a short time period.

Practice SMART Goal Setting 

Try turning this example goal into a SMART Goal: “I will go to the gym whenever I get the chance in the next month”

Note: This is not a SMART goal as it is too vague, not specific about what you will do at the gym, hard to measure and no time/frequency specified.

Example Revised to a SMART goal: “I will go to the gym and walk around the track for 30 minutes twice a week- on Tuesday and Thursday lunch hours- over the next 4 weeks.”  Note: This is now a SMART goal because it is small, states specific days and times, is measurable, is realistic and time-limited.

Remember: Whenever you are in doubt, make your goal smaller to increase your chances of success. Small changes can lead to big health changes over time!