The Importance of S.M.A.R.T. Goals

In time management a need for the development goal-setting skills. In this section, we hope to go over how students can be supported by using S.M.A.R.T. goals (please see Image 1).

What are S.M.A.R.T. goals? They are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and timely (Boogaard, 2022; University of Toronto, n.d.; University of California)!

Specific

This is where students will look at creating tangible items and tasks. An example could be completing a creative output assignment in a Fall Term course or applying for an Executive position on a campus club (Boogaard, 2022; University of Toronto, n.d.). Questions that students may ask themselves in this step could be:

• What action or tasks should be prioritized at this time?

• What is the goal or action item they are hoping to achieve?

• Who will take the lead in the realization of this goal? Who can support the student in this goal?

The student may choose to ask themselves the 5Ws (Who, What, Where, Why & How) to ensure they are reflecting on a specific tangible goal and/or achievement (Boogaard, 2022; University of Toronto, n.d.; University of California).

Measurable

This step is to ensure that the student is staying accountable to the goals progress. The student must ask themselves in this step is:

• How are we measuring this goal?

• When do we know that the goal has been completed?

This may look like self-reflective check-ins through journaling, check off to-do lists, reflection on overall understanding and comfortability with course material etc. Overall, this is to ensure there are measures in place to allow students to stay on track of their goals (Boogaard, 2022; University of Toronto, n.d.; University of California)!

Achievable

Goals must be realistic, achievable and feasible. At times students may feel as if they are not being productive enough in their efforts, but this could be because they have held themselves to an unachievably high standard. It is important to set ourselves for success by breaking down the steps and ways they can meet their overall goal – ensuring we are taking a growth mindset. This will allow for the student to prioritize sustainability in goal setting through balance rather than finding themselves in a space of feelings related to burnout (Boogaard, 2022; University of Toronto, n.d.; University of California). They might ask themselves:

• Is this deadline feasible or enough time to do all my course readings, meet my group members on Zoom, make notes, start research on my annotated bibliography and complete the online discussions? Should I allot more time to complete these takes to allow for a more realistic timeline?

Relevant

When organizing tasks – the student must ask themselves where each task fits in the larger picture, as if to reflect on the significance of the action items. This may include time management strategies, such as the Eisenhower Matrix. More information about this can be found on our tab outlining our 5 Tips for Time Management (Team Asana, 2021; University of California; University of Toronto, 2022).

Timely

The final step is to ensure that the student is outlining deadlines for the completion of goals. An example could be outlining internal deadlines for an assignment, which may look like the following:

1. By Monday: Write the draft for the Introduction, Argument 1 & 2 for the literature review. Reaching out to supports, such as writing support services at their academic institution.

2. By Tuesday: Write the draft for Argument 3 and Conclusion. Start working on in-text citations and reference page.

3. By Wednesday: A read through and corrections of grammatical errors. Continue to work on in-text citations and reference page. Connecting with writing support services.

4. By Thursday: Final read through, placing APA style format (i.e., title page, headers etc.) and finalization on citation.

5. By Friday: Submit assignment for evaluation.

A great worksheet that can support your development of S.M.A.R.T. be found here (Boogaard, 2022; University of Toronto, n.d.; University of California).

References:

Boogaard, K. (2022, February 17). How to write smart goals (with examples). Work Life by Atlassian. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://www.atlassian.com/blog/productivity/how-to-write-smart-goals#:~:text=What%20are%20SMART%20goals%3F,within%20a%20certain%20time%20frame.

Chan, M. Y., Swann, C., & Donnelly, J. (2018). Are S.M.A.R.T goals really smart? The

psychological effects of goal-setting in a learning task. Frontiers in Psychology, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/conf.fpsyg.2018.74.00020

khanacademy. (2018, August 10). LearnStorm growth mindset: How to write a smart goal.

YouTube. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4IU-y9-J8Q&ab_channel=KhanAcademy

MindTools (n.d.). Smart goals: How to make your goals achievable. Time Management Training From MindTools.com. Retrieved July 30, 2022, from https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/smart-goals.htm

University of Toronto. (n.d.). Smart goals worksheet - UofT student life. Retrieved July 30, 2022,

from https://studentlife.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/SMART-Goals-Worksheet.pdf

University of California. (n.d.). SMART Goals: A How to Guide. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://www.ucop.edu/local-human-resources/

Simplilearn. (2022, April 12). Smart goals: Powerful way to get where you want to be:

Simplilearn. Simplilearn.com. Retrieved July 29, 2022, from https://www.simplilearn.com/smart-goals-examples-article