SMART Goals and Aims

The setting of realistic and achievable goals/aims by a participant is essential in allowing them to undertake a purposeful and challenging activity.

A weak goal may simply describe an activity without adding sufficient detail either to measure success or set a target.  For example, 'I want to improve my piano playing' is a goal that just explains the activity; a smarter goal would be 'I will practise the piano weekly to improve my playing well enough to perform three songs confidently at the school concert held at the end of the year'.

Are your targets S.M.A.R.T.?

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More examples of SMART goals:

Physical Recreation: I will improve my endurance, cardiovascular health, and muscle mass by taking part in a training plan for 13 weeks that includes running 4 times per week and strength training 3 times per week so I can achieve a 5% increase in muscle mass and be able to run 5km in 30 minutes.

Voluntary Service: My goal is to help the under-8's improve their volleyball skills, including teamwork, serving and spiking. I will volunteer as a junior coach 1 hour per week for the next 52 weeks with the Junior league. I will work with the coach to assist with leading drills and will build towards independently coaching a small group of players, thus increasing my leadership and coaching abilities.

 

Are your logs personal and do they show progress towards your target?

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  • What did you plan to do?
  • What did you actually do?
  • What went well? How can you improve next week?

Goals should be periodically reviewed in discussion between the participant, Award Leader and Assessor. It is important that a realistic goal is established and remains so.  The goal should also motivate a participant to finish their activity rather than cause them to give up because the task is too difficult.