Just like chocolate and peanut butter, SMART goals and small experiments are two great things that go great together. So, let’s mash up SMART goals with small experiments to make your goals even SMARTER! This process will help you make those daily small improvements that add up to big successes.

First, start with a SMART Goal 

The idea of SMART goals has been around for a long time (at least since the 1980s). The SMART acronym is a checklist to help you create goals that are realistic and achievable. SMART stands for:

Specific - 

Laser-focused goals will serve you well because they are clear. To say “I’ll be a better leader” is not clear. To say, “I will create a process to help me give better feedback” is.

Measurable - 

One reason you want “specific” goals is that it helps make them measurable. It’s hard to measure “being a better leader.” It is much easier to gauge whether or not you’ve created a process for giving better feedback. To that point, you want to ask yourself, “How will I know that I’ve achieved my goal?” Is this simply about having a process, or is it about how the person receives the feedback? Once you know what you are measuring, it will help you make your goal and action items even more specific. To make goals measurable, I find it helpful to focus on specific behaviors or actions.

Achievable - 

While I appreciate the spirit behind statements like “Shoot for the stars, and you’ll at least hit the moon,” I don’t find it to be a constructive way to create goals. Why? Because it’s like saying, “I’ll play a round of golf where I hit a hole in one every time.” No matter how well you play, you are setting yourself up for that gremlin voice in your head that says, “you didn’t really succeed.” Set goals that are so focused, you can’t miss them. You are not “settling.” You are “making measurable progress.” 

Relevant - 

The coaching process is like helping clients build a bridge. We start with where you are now, define where you want to go, and then make a bridge to get there. How do we build that bridge? By helping you take the next step toward that goal, one step at a time. Relevant goals are that “next step.” 

Timebound - 

Since I typically meet with clients every other week, I encourage them to set goals that they will achieve before the next meeting. I find that the shorter the time frame for completing a laser-specific goal, the better. If you can’t reach it within that timeframe, break the goal into a smaller piece (a more minor “step”).

Then, Make It SMARTER

Here is where we add the small experiment part to our SMART goals. Remember that small experiments are all about taking specific actions, reflecting on those actions, and then applying that learning to help you get closer to your big goals (for coaching clients, these are generally six-month goals). So, here is how to add the -ER to SMART.

Execute - 

Here is where you take action on your goal. Do something! Sometimes fear keeps us from taking action. When I fear making a mistake, and that keeps me from taking meaningful action, I find it helpful to remind myself, “I’m not going to break this so badly that I can’t fix it later.”

Reflect - 

Remember that the power of coaching comes from a process where we continuously “deepen the learning and forward the action.” That’s what small experiments do for you. Take time to ask yourself:

• What happened?

• So what makes that important? What can I learn from this?

• Now what will I do with that information? How will I apply it to get closer to my bigger goal?

For Reflection

Additional Resources

• For more on SMART goals, see this article.

• For more on small experiments, see this blog post.