Last year one of my friends gave a lesson about goal setting at church. I have always loved setting and accomplishing goals so this lesson was one of my favorites. It was on setting SMART goals:
S – Specific
M – Measurable
A – Attainable
R – Realistic
T – Timely
Each step is pretty self-explanatory; the concept is simple but the results are amazing. I think an important part of setting goals is to believe in what you have set and that you can accomplish it. I also believe that if you set yourself up for defeat by saying “I have set a goal to do this but do not know if I can do it” you will fail. Negative thoughts have a way of hanging in the air and ensuring defeat. Not only will the person who expresses the negative thoughts feel it, but those around can start to ingest it. Negative thoughts can consume a person and be deflected on those around. Have you ever noticed how hard it is to be happy and positive when someone around is moody and determined to be negative?
What do setting SMART goals and having a negative attitude have to do with each other? Well when I set a goal to accomplish something with a team of individuals, who I know can accomplish a task in a specific amount of time, I expect we can do it. Failure is not an option. It hit me last night that the best laid plans can be uprooted by a negative attitude and when this happens it takes a great deal of positive attitude and energy to get back on track.
Tonight this is going to be accomplished with Christmas music! (yes I know it is September)
6 comments:
THAT IS AWSOME! I have been really trying to have a better attitude about things lately. I felt way to negative all the time. It has made a huge difference. I also belive in the power of I CAN! If you truly have a vision of what you want to accomplish in your life and it is a good and righteous desire, IT WILL HAPPEN. I think this has been my favorite post of yours. I love it and am going to apply it to my other motivating thoughts! Thanks.
Yeah! Enjoy the Christmas music!
It is amazing how much just thinking positively changes things. I had a roommate to once told me that if I stopped saying things like "I'm so dumb" or "I'm such a spaz" that my self-esteem would skyrocket. She was right!
Good luck with your goals, Steph!
Steph, that is amazing! Can I borrow this to teach my kids at school? Thank you for the great lesson!!
Christmas music really is a magic cure-all, isn't it? I've been planning my next recital for around Thanksgiving and picking Christmas music for my students - I love it!
Thanks, Steph! I've always been a goal setter too and I've found lately that it's harder for me to keep negativity at bay. That's why Jason and I are a part of Sterling Singers--we sing wonderful Christmas music every Sunday with 250 incredibly talented people! How many more days till Sunday? Yay for Christmas music!
Great post Steph! I am horrible at sticking to my goals. I always fizzle out. I like your SMART formula. I am alway "restarting" my goals, but will try it the SMART way and see if I can actually see something through to the end.
It's never too early to listen to Christmas Music.
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