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Mastering the Art of Measurable Goals: A Guide to Success

What are Measurable Goals?

Written by R. A. Stewart

Have you ever set a goal, poured your heart and soul into it and still failed to achieve your goal, leaving you unfulfilled and disappointed?

It could be that you have set a goal which is vague and lacks clarity. 

The solution is to set goals which are measurable.

What is a measurable goal?

Setting measurable goals allows you to create a clear road map that allows you to track your progress and allow you to celebrate each achievement.

Vague Goal Versus Measurable Goal

A vague goal is “Lose weight”

A measurable goal is, “To lose 5kgs in 30 days.”

This kind of goal tells you what kind of outcome you are seeking. 

A vague goal is, “Get fit”

A measurable goal, “Is to complete a 5k fun run by 1 February. 

Once you have clearly specified your goal and measured it, it is time to set sub goals.

A lose weight sub goal could be to eliminate all fizzy drinks from your diet.

A goal of, “To complete the Park Run at such and such city this Saturday” is a measurable goal. It tells you what you need to do and when.

If your fitness is such that you need to start training in order to make this goal a reality then you will have a much longer time frame of say, 4-6 weeks, but your more immediate goals will be to run x number of miles per week and increase your mileage as your fitness levels increase.

Run more and your capacity to run longer distances will increase. It is all about the mileage.

Less active people have the capacity to do less exercise. It is the old story of “Use it or lose it.”

Other examples of measurable goals are:

Increase my Youtube subscriber count from 1,000 to 1,500 by February 28.

Save $5,000 for my airfare to the UK by December 31

Invest $1,000 into my retirement fund by June 30

Run 1 mile without stopping for a rest within 6 weeks.

Apply for at least 5 jobs in the xxx industry every week

Increase website traffic by 20% by April 2025

Run a 5k road race in under 30 minutes by March

Read one book a month by the end of the year

Learn 100 new words in a foreign language by June

Write one new article per week

List 3 new products in my etsy/ebay/amazon store per week.

This is a general idea of how to frame your goals so that they are measurable. You are more likely to achieve whatever you are aiming for if you are specific and put a time frame on it.

About this article

You may use this article as content for your blog/website or ebook. 

Check out my other articles on www.robertastewart.com

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Setting Achievable Goals

Setting Achievable Goals

Written by R. A. Stewart

“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve”-Napoleon Hill

A goal needs to be achievable, otherwise it is just a fantasy. To set a goal such as “Win the lottery next Saturday” cannot be achieved through your own efforts. It is just a fantasy.

To set a goal of “To be as good as Tiger Woods at golf” when you have no ability whatsoever at playing golf is also unachievable. That is not to say that you are not capable of reaching a certain standard if you take up golf.

What is achievable is a goal which you are physically capable of achieving through your own efforts.

“To complete your first 5k fun run” is an achievable goal if you can run.

Saving for something is a common goal which people aim for. Saving a specified amount of money per week always leads to a much larger goal such as a house deposit, car, overseas holiday, or a retirement fund.

Success can be measured in several different ways. A cricketer can measure their success in their chosen sport in terms of the number of wickets taken or the number of runs they have scored.

What is achievable can be just a matter of an individual’s self image and how they value their abilities. Venturing outside of your comfort zone will enable you to realise your full potential. A negative attitude, low self-esteem, and unwilling to step outside of the well trodden beaten path will be barriers to achievement. 

Negative comments from others who are quick to put a dampener on your aspirations are also a hindrance to your efforts to better yourself. It is best to keep your goals to yourself and focus on what you are doing.

Some people who are keen to tell others of what they are doing are doing so in order to gain approval from others, and when they do not get it they feel deflated. 

There is no law to say that others must give you their tick of approval to everything you do.

Don’t look at your current circumstances and think I cannot do this, but rather look at your current circumstances and think “What needs to change in order that I get the outcome which I am seeking?” You may have heard the saying, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.”

About this article

This article is of the opinion of the writer and may not be applicable to your personal circumstances, therefore discretion is advised. You may use this article as content for your blog/website or ebook.

Read my other articles on www.robertastewart.com

 

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Stop Wishing, Start Planning: The Power of SMART Goals

Setting SMART Goals

Written by R. A. Stewart

You may have heard of S.M.A.R.T goals. If not, here is what setting SMART goals really means.

Specific

Measurable

Achievable

Relevant

Timed

Here is an explanation of each part of S.M.A.R.T goals.

Specific

A goal needs to be specific otherwise it has no chance of succeeding. Examples of goals which are vague and not specific are:

Lose weight

Save money

Go on holiday

Get fit

The reason why they are vague goals is that there is no way of knowing when you have achieved your goal. If your goal is to lose weight then how much weight do you want to lose? If you want to save money then what are you saving money for and how much money do you want to save?

Measurable

A measurable goal is a goal that you specify what you want top achieve. If you want to get fit and you have never done any running previously then you might set a goal such as “I want to jog one mile without stopping for a rest.” This is measurable. You know whether you have achieved your goal or not.

Achievable

The goal must be achievable through your own efforts. A goal such as “To win the lottery” is not achievable through your own efforts because you cannot do anything to influence the outcome. A goal such as “To eliminate one bad food from my diet every week” is achievable through your own efforts because your choices will influence the outcome.

Relevant

A relevant goal is one which is relevant to your own personal circumstances and skill set. A relevant goal is not one that is imposed on you by well meaning friends and associates who say, “You should do this and you should do that.” Think for yourself and make your own choices. It is a good idea to keep your goals to yourself unless of course they affect your family. 

Timed

A timed goal has a deadline attached to it. For example you may have set a goal, “To jog a mile without stopping for a rest.” This goal is not timed, but if it is December 31 then you may set a goal, “To jog a mile without stopping for a rest by February 1.”

Your next task is deciding how you are going to achieve your goal. On day one you may decide that you will jog for 400 metres, walk 400 metres, jog 400 metres, and walk 400 metres. 

In the second week you could increase the distances you jog without stopping and reduce the walking distance.

By breaking down your goal into simple steps you can achieve your S.M.A.R.T goal.

All the best and a happy new year.

About this article

You may use this article as content for your blog, website, or ebook. 

Www.robertastewart.com

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What are Measurable Goals?

What are Measurable Goals?

Written by R. A. Stewart

Have you ever set a goal, poured your heart and soul into it and still failed to achieve your goal, leaving you unfulfilled and disappointed?

It could be that you have set a goal which is vague and lacks clarity. 

The solution is to set goals which are measurable.

What is a measurable goal?

Setting measurable goals allows you to create a clear road map that allows you to track your progress and allow you to celebrate each achievement.

Vague Goal Versus Measurable Goal

A vague goal is “Lose weight”

A measurable goal is, “To lose 5kgs in 30 days.”

This kind of goal tells you what kind of outcome you are seeking. 

A vague goal is, “Get fit”

A measurable goal, “Is to complete a 5k fun run by 1 February. 

Once you have clearly specified your goal and measured it, it is time to set sub goals.

A lose weight sub goal could be to eliminate all fizzy drinks from your diet.

A goal of, “To complete the Park Run at such and such city this Saturday” is a measurable goal. It tells you what you need to do and when.

If your fitness is such that you need to start training in order to make this goal a reality then you will have a much longer time frame of say, 4-6 weeks, but your more immediate goals will be to run x number of miles per week and increase your mileage as your fitness levels increase.

Run more and your capacity to run longer distances will increase. It is all about the mileage.

Less active people have the capacity to do less exercise. It is the old story of “Use it or lose it.”

Other examples of measurable goals are:

Increase my Youtube subscriber count from 1,000 to 1,500 by February 28.

Save $5,000 for my airfare to the UK by December 31

Invest $1,000 into my retirement fund by June 30

Run 1 mile without stopping for a rest within 6 weeks.

Apply for at least 5 jobs in the xxx industry every week

Increase website traffic by 20% by April 2025

Run a 5k road race in under 30 minutes by March

Read one book a month by the end of the year

Learn 100 new words in a foreign language by June

Write one new article per week

List 3 new products in my etsy/ebay/amazon store per week.

This is a general idea of how to frame your goals so that they are measurable. You are more likely to achieve whatever you are aiming for if you are specific and put a time frame on it.

About this article

You may use this article as content for your blog/website or ebook. 

Check out my other articles on www.robertastewart.com