For those who have watched it, let’s move on to my tips on how to set smart goals easily:

Specific goals are well-defined & clear. To make your goal specific, state precisely what needs to be accomplished by answering 5 "W" questions:

• What do you want to accomplish? Identify the requirements and constraints.
• Why do you want to do it? Identify the purpose and benefits of accomplishing the goal.
• Who is involved? Will you be supported or alone?
• Where will it take place? Is there only one location involved or more?
• When does it need to be completed by? “Someday” doesn’t work. You should anchor it within a certain timeframe.

Measurable goals have concrete criteria that help you know how much progress you’ve made and how far away you are from reaching your target. What would have to happen for you to recognize that you have successfully accomplished your goal? To make sure your goal is measurable, ask yourself “How much” or “how many” and “by when”. After that, it's very important to define the tools and values you'll use to quantify your progress.

For example, if you decide that you want to lose 10 pounds in the next 3 months, you may choose to use a scale a BMI calculator or even a body fat percent monitor. As there are many ways to track progress for each different goal, it's important to narrow it down to one and to keep it consistent as the only tool you're using, otherwise you could confuse yourself to the point of giving up.

Attainable goals take into consideration the amount of resources, knowledge and time you have at your disposal. If you don’t have the means, support or skills to achieve them, then you should at the very least be willing to look up how to acquire those things. SMART goals need to be achievable and realistic, so you can set each consecutive goal high enough so that you’re challenged by it, yet low enough so that you remain motivated to strive for it without becoming disheartened.

And keep in mind that the word “realistic” is subjective. What one person considers impossible, another person is encouraged to push towards despite all odds. But it’s important to know where your limits are. One way to know if your goal is realistic is to determine if you’ve accomplished anything similar in the past. At the end of the day, your goal is probably realistic if you truly believe that it can be accomplished. But the more people who agree with you that it’s achievable, the better.

Relevant goals are related to your purpose in the sense that they are in alignment with your core values, interests and gifts. If they aren’t, then you won’t consider them important enough to spend the time and energy on them necessary to achieve them. Your goals need to matter in your life. Identifying why they matter to you can make the difference between staying motivated and losing interest when complacency sets in. Basically, you need to find your "why" - the driving force behind your journey.

If you aren't sure what your life purpose is, this article can help you out. If you'd like to identify your values, I have a test you can use to figure that out.

Tangible goals can be experienced with one of the senses (taste, touch, smell, sight or hearing). This gives you a better chance of making it specific and measurable and thus attainable. Now, it’s important to note here that if your goal isn’t tangible, that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth striving for. It just means it requires more effort in the previous 4 parts of the SMART acronym to make sure you achieve it.

Based on all the above, an example of a SMART goal would be as follows:

• Specific: I will acquire three new clients for my consulting business within two months using online marketing methods and I want to do this because growing my business will afford me enough cashflow to travel.
• Measurable: I will measure my progress by how many new clients I bring on within the next two months, while maintaining my current client base.
• Attainable: I will ask current clients for referrals, launch a social media marketing campaign and network with local businesses. I have the financial and social means to do this at the moment, but I might have to read up on recent online marketing trends.
• Relevant: Adding additional clients to my business will allow me to grow my business and increase my revenue by enough so that I can travel while working.
• Tangible: I will have three new clients that I will be able to see and/or speak with.

Try out these tips and if you’re still having trouble, you can use my contact form to ask questions, or book a complimentary breakthrough session to see how I can personally help you out.

Want more videos with free happiness tips? Visit my YouTube channel today! Each video comes with an article like this one to help you put the strategy into practice.

If you’re looking for more detailed ways to create a happier life, click the self-help resources tab in the menu. There are three books there I particularly recommend. The second one is my favourite and it personally transformed my life!

See you next Sunday! And remember: happiness doesn’t require energy, it requires strategy.