What Are SMART Goals? Meaning, Criteria and an Example

A goal like "I want to get fit" is hard to act on: it never says what to do or by when. Setting SMART goals turns it into a plan you can actually start on Monday.

What are SMART goals?

SMART goals are goals that meet five criteria: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. Each letter is a question you ask your goal before you begin.

When you've answered all five, you know exactly what you'll do, by when, and how you'll know you got there.

What does SMART stand for? The five criteria, with an example

Today SMART usually stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound. Follow one vague goal down the table, row by row, until it's a SMART goal.

Letter	Means	The question to ask	Vague → SMART
S	Specific	What exactly do I want?	"get fit" → "start running"
M	Measurable	How will I know I've done it?	→ "run 30 minutes, three times a week"
A	Achievable	Can I do this with my time, energy and experience?	I run twice a week for 15 minutes now, so three 30-minute runs is a stretch I can handle
R	Relevant	Why do I want this, and does it fit my life right now?	→ "so I can run a 5K this summer"
T	Time-bound	By when?	→ "until March 15"

The finished goal: "I'll run 30 minutes three times a week until March 15, so I can run a 5K this summer."

Stuck on one letter? These questions help:

• S: What do I want to accomplish? Why does it matter to me? Who else is involved? What do I need, and what's in my way?
• M: When does the goal count as done? Which number will show me (miles, pounds, dollars, pages)?
• A: Has anyone done this before? How would I go about it? Do I have the time, money and experience? What could stop me?
• R: Is this the right time? Is it worth the effort? Does it fit with my other goals?
• T: By when do I want to get there, and is that deadline fair for the work involved?

If a goal looks out of reach at A, set a smaller milestone first. If you're unsure at R, try the goal for a few weeks. By then you'll usually know whether it's worth it to you.

Which version of SMART is right?

There are several, and they all mean roughly the same thing. The acronym comes from George T. Doran, a consultant who introduced it in Management Review in 1981. He was writing for managers, not for people setting personal goals.

Letter	Doran, 1981	Most common today
S	Specific	Specific
M	Measurable	Measurable
A	Assignable (who will do it?)	Achievable
R	Realistic	Relevant
T	Time-related	Time-bound

You'll also see Realistic in place of Relevant, and Attainable in place of Achievable, which means the same thing. For a personal goal, use today's version. Doran's "Assignable" only helps when several people share a goal.

Why does the SMART method work?

Because it forces you to get specific. Psychologists Edwin Locke and Gary Latham reviewed 35 years of goal-setting research and found that specific, challenging goals lead to better performance than "just do your best."

What that research doesn't show: that the SMART acronym itself works better than any other way of making a goal concrete. SMART is a handy checklist, not a tested formula.

Once your goal is set, you can put it on a vision board along with the reason behind it. That way you see both every day.

What are the pros and cons of SMART goals?

For a personal goal, SMART's biggest strength is clarity. The trade-off: it leaves little room for mood, luck or big dreams.

Pros	Cons
You know exactly what to do next.	A fixed plan gets rigid when your life changes.
You can see your progress in numbers.	Tunnel vision: it's easy to miss new chances along the way.
Goals that aren't worth the effort drop out early.	Tired weeks, low moods and bad days aren't in the plan.
A clear start and deadline make it harder to put things off.	Plan only what you can measure, and your goals tend to shrink over time.

Do SMART goals work for long-term goals?

Yes, with more room to adjust. SMART works best for goals over the next few weeks or months, where you can plan the details.

For something three years out, let the dream stay big and visual, on your vision board for example. Make only the next step SMART. Check it every few weeks and change it when your life changes.

What's next?

Knowing the definition is a start. These posts help you put it to work:

• Get ideas from SMART goal examples across different areas of life.
• Write your own goal with the SMART goals template.
• Then read how to achieve your goals once the plan is set and real life gets in the way.

If you'd rather see your goal as a picture, our vision board templates are a good place to start. Keep it where you'll see it, and every few weeks ask whether your next step still fits.