New Year Goal Setting

Happy New Year! It is officially January – a month of new beginnings and New Year’s resolutions. For collegiate members, it is also the beginning of a new semester/quarter, new courses, new professors, and many times new Delta Zeta officer positions. Or in other words, the perfect time for goal-setting. We all set goals, whether they be academic, personal, health and fitness, professional or for the success of an organization with which we are involved. Unfortunately, most of us have experienced instances where we have not met those goals or felt we plateaued in our progress towards them because we just didn’t know what to do next. Some purposeful work on the front-end, using the SMART goal-setting method, can help us all achieve what we wish in 2012.

SMART (or sometimes SMARTER) is a mnemonic for objective-based goal-setting. While there is no standard definition for each letter, it is commonly interpreted to mean:

• S – Specific – Goals should be clear and precise. It can be helpful to think of the 5 W questions here.
• What do you want to accomplish exactly?
• Why is that important?
• Who will be involved?
• Where will this be achieved?
• Which requirements/constraints should be articulated?
• M – Measurable – Identify criteria by which you can gauge progress. This can help you, or your group, stay on track and meet your target dates. This can also assist with motivation. We all love to check things off to-do lists.
• A – Attainable – Goals should be achievable. Goals that require you to stretch and think big are appropriate, but goals that are out of reach or are below your typical performance are not as meaningful.
• R – Relevant – Goals should be worthwhile and important to you. Make sure you are willing and able to work towards this goal.
• T – Time Bound – Set a target date for each goal. This will help you set incremental goals to track your progress. It also helps prevent this goal from being lost in day-to-day activities.
• E – This “E” can mean several items based upon your goal-setting environment. For example, ethical, ecological, evaluate, enjoyable, engaging. If one of these words resonates with you and your goal-setting, be sure to incorporate it into your goal-setting.
• R – Reevaluate, recordable, rewarding, reaching, reassess. Use as appropriate in your goal-setting environment.

What are some of your SMART goals for the coming year? Do you want to raise your chapter GPA by .1 points? Do you want to put an extra $200 in savings each month? Do you want to run your first marathon? Share with us what goals you are setting by leaving a comment on our Facebook page or tweeting them to @DeltaZetaNatl using the hashtag #DZGoal. Or use the Facebook comment feature on this blog.