Daily work

Introduction

The SMART goal framework is a useful framework for planning, structuring and executing work towards a specific goal for Daily work. It is a user-friendly methodology, in that it instructs which aspects of a goal and associated milestones should be included, and how these should be formulated to have best effect. This combination makes the SMART framework very powerful and significantly increases the chances of the goal at hand actually being reached.

Daily goals are by definition short term in nature, i.e. executable within a narrow timeframe (“daily”). As such, these will normally be formulated in the form of clear “initiatives”, “actions” or “tasks”, which however should be derived from, and further the achievement of, longer-term ambitions.

Examples

• Send 2 article drafts to John before 5PM.
• Call 10 new potential customers today
• Do 30 minutes of yoga before 9PM

The smart method

A goal will only qualify as SMART if all aspects are fulfilled. When correctly formulated, SMART goals ensure that you:

The acronym for smart:

• S - (Specific): Have a clear direction of where you are heading
• M - (Measurable): Can assess the outcome of your efforts
• A - (Achievable): Work towards a realistic ambition
• R - (Relevant): Focus resources on the correct tasks
• T - (Time-bound): Feel an appropriate sense of urgency