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How To Redefine Your SMART Goals In An Unconventional Way

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How To Redefine Your SMART Goals In An Unconventional Way

Setting goals and achieving them is the key to accomplish all that you want in life.  If you ask any successful person you know, they would say that they owe a lot of their success to this one simple and powerful process of defining and achieving goals.

Honestly, most people do not have a very strong answer to “What are your goals?”. They would say anything that sounds pretty good or catchy to impress people around them. It’s quite intriguing to see, how with time, the goals seem to fade away.

I believe that there are no secrets to success. There are systems to success. The reason why most people do not accomplish the goals which they set out to achieve is because of the system they were exposed to. The first point you get to hear when you start setting or reading or discussing your goals is that the goals should be SMART goals. (SMART: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Based.) Without any doubt SMART goals will set-up a baseline. However, with constantly changing times, goal setting is much beyond just being SMART.

Here is how I personally define SMART, this might sound very unconventional:

Stretch

It is impossible for you to know what you are capable of, unless you allow yourself to reach for the things which you think are way beyond your reach. Most of us under-estimate the unimaginable potential we hold and settle for something less.  Most goals we set are way within our comfort zone and within our reach. They are known to us and well within our control.

When you set goals that will make you stretch beyond what you think you are capable of reaching, you discover a new realm of possibility, which you had never imagined for yourself. That’s where the true treasure of your potential lies.

Next time, when you set goals, do ensure that they stretch you farther than you could’ve ever imagined. Remember you are only confined by the walls you build.

“What we think determines what happens to us, so if we want to change our lives, we need to stretch our minds.” – Wayne Dyer

Magnificent

The likelihood of someone sticking to a goal is largely determined by the way the goals are defined. If the goals motivate you, you will certainly be willing to make that extra effort. Appreciate your goals and set high standard goals for yourself. The key is to set goals which are in alignment with your vision of yourself.

Write and share them with as much positive energy as you can. You must avoid the goals which sound impressive to others and that fail to appreciate your true self.

Actionable

The reason most people fail to achieve their goals is not because of their inability to set goals but their inability to take that massive action required.

Goals without actions are just Dreams. You accomplish your goals when you define a massive action plan and not merely by speaking about them. Your actions are the true measure of who you are, what you stand for and what you believe in.

Believe in your goals and bond them well with a necessary action plan.

Reflect & Reward

As quoted earlier, with changing times it’s essential that we reflect on our goals and monitor what is working and what is not. We are more likely to move towards goals that bring us a clear sense of reward along the journey, as well as in reaching the destination.

While reflecting upon your goal, the purpose is to determine the next plan of action and also to know if there are any necessary corrections required in the flow of actions.

It’s imperative that you set aside a weekly “reflect and reward” cycle to monitor your progress in order to achieve your defined goals.

“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.” – Mark Twain

Transforming

Check whether the goals you set are transforming you to a better person. The goals you set, ultimately defines how you look at your life and the outcome you produce is a reflection of our inner being. Each goal you set, must transform you into a better human being. After you accomplish each of your goals, you must come out as a stronger, wiser and an evolved human being.

 

Most people exert all their time and energy only on setting SMART goals the old way and are left with very little or no energy in achieving them. In my passion of studying success, I learnt how successful people deliver top class outcome and remain unshaken in demanding times.  A close look reveals that the key distinctive factor is in their ability to not just constantly set SMART goals the old way but fuel their energy by redefining their goals in the new SMART way. This empowers them and allows them to follow through until they achieve what they had set out to achieve.  

Thank you for reading my article! What is your goal setting process like?

Sharat Sharma, is an author of an upcoming book, Entrepreneur, a Speaker and a Performance Coach. He is a student of success and human potential. He loves writing and spreading happiness. Currently Sharat is on a mission to transform lives of a million people around him. He has been trained and mentored by global leaders like Les Brown, T Harv Eker, Blair Singer. You can connect with him on his Facebook and Twitter.

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Success Advice

How to Alter Your Business Approach With Technological Advancements

Keeping up with technological trends has become a challenge for almost every business owner.

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altering business approach
Image Credit: Midjourney

Technology’s evolution has impacted everything, and business is no exception. Keeping up with technological trends has become a challenge for almost every business owner. Entrepreneurs unable to do so are being wiped out of the market.

There is no doubt that AI (Artificial Intelligence) and ML (Machine Learning) have taken over the business world. These technological advancements are impacting decision-making, success percentages, and other entrepreneurial aspects.

Adapting to these developments is integral to business success. Let’s explore how you can accomplish these milestones.

Embed the strength of AI and ML.

AI has modified business operations in major ways. For instance, companies have employed bots for customer support. These bots go through an effective learning process via Machine Learning before being able to answer like humans.  

Bots can also perform detailed data analytics and make business moves with high success percentages.

ML is used more for the analysis of data chunks and generating successful predictions. This simply means that business owners do not have to worry about large-scale financial losses. 

In terms of deployment and usage, a reputed company like Netflix employs machine learning for decision-making.

Blockchain is increasing the count of business opportunities

Tampering of financial transactions is quite common and causes severe monetary damage to customers. With the rise of digital payments, this risk has increased. 

Blockchain is used to elevate your experience for monetary transfers. It combats penetrating events to extract confidential customer information. 

Most business sectors are using block chain but finance and supply chain management sections have a higher count. These two corporate sections have several monetary deposits and withdrawals taking place. 

In terms of percentage, approximately 72% and 5% of finance and supply chain firms have implemented block chain successfully.

Dedicate Yourself to Continuous Learning and Individual Development

You invest in learning some of the very important skills, including digital marketing, financial management, and how to gain customers as an entrepreneur.

You need to set up your knowledge base about doing business on Coursera and Udemy with the basics that are necessary for the business, building further by networking with experts through webinars.

Besides, Agile methodology will introduce elasticity to your company: this review and feedback system with further correction regularly will allow for enhancing efficiency and promptly reacting to the market.

Developing key skills to achieve goals

Running a business successfully is not only about having niche/domain knowledge. Business owners need to have communication / soft skills as well in addition to niche information.

Here are some key technical/domain-related areas that business owners should have a strong grip on.

Data Storage on Cloud: These days, companies do not store their data on physical servers. Therefore business owners should know how data is stored/edited/removed/updated via AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and other platforms.

Data Analysis/Interpretation Qualities: These days, data is as precious as gold. Business owners with data analysis abilities make correct predictions. As a result, their ventures grow in volume.

Development/Coding Knowledge

Programming knowledge gives business owners an edge whether the application is developed in-house or outsourced. It assists in getting updates deployed and handling application underperformance without getting professional support every time.

Hacking proof framework

There is no benefit of having an advanced automated system if can be penetrated. Successful business owners have above-average knowledge of cyber security and hacking attempts. They are able to choose top-notch anti-hacking software without much of an ambiguity.

Communication Abilities/Soft Skills

Here are some key communication qualities that business owners should have:

Communication/Conversation: Business owners should use to-the-point sentences in both written and oral communication.

Issue Resolution Abilities: Business owners should be able to drill down to problems and solve them. This is done successfully only if an entrepreneur has in-depth business domain knowledge.

Agile Implementations

It is mandatory for business owners to have knowledge of iterative/agile models. With such a competitive environment, it is impossible for business owners to succeed without adopting an agile framework.

Create a productive well-crafted Business Strategy

A productive business venture starts with a clear vision. The first factor making a business successful is the idea behind it. It helps with endless growth and combating competition successfully. Katherine Philips once mentioned that business goals are inevitable if goals are set concretely.

  • Goals should be based on smart achievements instead of complexity. Focus on the value that each one of them adds. 
  • Business objectives should not be vague. Key indicators should be constructed to measure the success/failure of each milestone.
  • Be realistic when setting goals. Do not aim at impossible milestones since they can be demotivating.
  • Milestones/goals need to be time-bound. Set a completion deadline for each one of them. 
  • Business goals should not be alien. Owners can think out of the box but not be obsolete / unrelated.

Create a productive well-crafted Business Strategy

Business owners cannot succeed without having a network. Some tips help in this case. Attend conferences and professional gatherings to connect with other entrepreneurs.
Here are some other related points business owners should pay attention to.

  • Attend meetings and conferences to stay updated with trends and meet business owners who already have well-set ventures. This helps in enhancing the learning curve of new / growing entrepreneurs.
  • Being a part of business communities/groups is very productive. When one shares opinions and discusses decision-making tactics, it helps in preventing errors and enhancing success rate.
  • Even the most experienced business owners have mentors as learning never stops. Take part in mentorship programs so there is an assurance that you are following the correct roadmap.

Conclusion

There is absolutely no doubt that business dimensions have evolved with technological advancements. Successful entrepreneurs have grabbed these changes in due course of time and continue to evolve. On the other hand, people following old paths and conventional steps fade out of competition. In a nutshell, keep an eye on the processes and practices you follow as these factors decide success rate.

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Success Advice

Understanding the Power of Yes and No: How to Create Boundaries For Success

These words have a significant impact on how our success unfolds

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Creating legal boundaries
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The two smallest yet most powerful words in life, “Yes” and “No,” have a big impact on our growth on both personal and professional levels. In addition to affecting the choices we make every day, these words have a significant impact on how our success unfolds. (more…)

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Motivation

From Couch Potato to Go-Getter: A Step-by-Step Motivation Plan for Everyone

By understanding what motivates you, you can turn your dreams into reality

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How to be motivated
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Are you tired of feeling like a couch potato? Do you want to transform your life and become a go-getter? You’re not alone! Many people struggle with motivation, but the good news is that change is possible. (more…)

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Success Advice

10 Micro Financial Habits for More Wealth and Peace of Mind

The World Economic Forum still reports that half of U.S. adults lack financial literacy

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micro financial habits
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You’ve heard about developing financial habits, but what about micro-financial habits? Micro habits are the tiny things you can do every day with minimal effort that, together, transform your future. (more…)

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