This text draws on an article published on the blog of Business2Community.com.
SMART is an acronym of Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely.
Specific
For your target to be relevant it must be concrete and specific. Define targets using measurable, quantitative parameters, such as an increase in percentage terms or as absolute values you want to achieve.
Measurable
The path towards targets should be measurable. You should know how far away from the goal you are so you can revise individual parameters of the target if required. It should not happen that you only find out at the very end whether or not you have reached the goal. Therefore, find measurement criteria that will help you track your progress.
Attainable
In terms of motivation and return on invested energy and time, it would make no sense to set unattainable goals. Yes, be ambitious, but also be patient and realistic. Set up plans you know you are capable of adhering to because exaggerated plans are rather demotivating.
Relevant
Targets and plans should be relevant and achieving them should be your priority. This might sound logical and obvious but it is something easily forgotten, especially when it comes to complex projects. Do not waste time and energy on goals and plans related to secondary, unimportant parameters; focus only on genuine priorities.
Timely
Every plan should have a specific timeline. Make a temporal prediction of your progress towards the defined goal and, when working on the project, compare this projection with the situation in real time.
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