Goals and Intentions

Goals are based on an intention to achieve something. Sometimes, goals are the ultimate outcome. While intentions provide the What and Why that motivates action, goals are meant to provide the How. 

Why break down intentions into goals:

I recommend breaking down an intention into more than one incremental goal for 3 reasons:

• It helps us think through the steps to get to the ultimate result so we can consider what could happen and what needs to happen
• Smaller steps make it easier for us to take action and be present while doing the work. On the other hand, we can get tired and discouraged if we don't approach things incrementally. 
• By breaking it down, we get more chances to celebrate. These little wins act as motivators to take the next step and we also get a chance to learn and re-affirm our intention or stop (yes, you are allowed to stop, pause, take a break) because you are in control.

Running or any other sport or physical activity for that matter provides a nice framework for goal setting but.. 

This is about Running and this is not about Running

Coach Bennett (Nike Run Club)

So let’s get into it. 

The Ingredients of a Great Goal

The acronym to remember is SMART ICE. 

S.M.A.R.T. I.C.E.

S.M.A.R.T.

Many of us have heard this acronym in the corporate setting but believe it or not, athletes also use a version of it while planning for an event. It stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time Bound. Let's go through each one. 

Specific

Means well defined, clear, unambiguous.  So “I want to get healthy” may seem like a good goal but it's ambiguous. A more specific goal is 

“I want to work out three times a week to get healthier". 

Measurable

Means there must be a way to measure progress or how much. Arguably, “I want to get healthy” seems measurable but the goal itself doesn't clarify how you will measure progress while working on the goal. However, let's try 

I want to work out three times a week to get healthier

This goal provides a clear measurement of progress i.e. how much are your working out per week. 

Achievable

Indicates that you have the means or the ability to achieve the goal. So, if you are physically unable to work out, say, because of an illness, setting out to work out three times a week is unrealistic. 

Relevant

Means the goal is relevant to your intention. In retrospect, this may seem like a no-brainer but if your intention was to win a chess tournament, working out three times a week to get healthier may be irrelevant to your goal. 

Timebound

Means your goals have a time limit to accomplish. This is missing in our goal to work to work out three times a week so let's make it timebound. 

I will work out three times a week this year to get healthier. 

You can stop at S.M.A.R.T. 

If you want to have a good goal. But, if you want to have a great goal, that helps you and your team achieve more, then go further. The reason is that over more than 20 years of looking at goals within a variety of companies and teams, I've learnt that SMART goals are missing 3 ingredients that make them great goals.  Let's see what they are:

Important

This ingredient adds the priority check to a Relevant goal. While the goal may be relevant to my intention is it so important that I am willing to put this at the top of my to-do list and make time for it. 

Challenging

This ingredient adds some "zing" to “Achievable”. While working on this goal stretch me a little bit i.e. I may know that I can start it but I don’t know if I can finish it.. and that’s okay.

Exciting 

This is the spice ingredient. When you work on this goal, it creates a feeling of excitement to learn something new, find a new way, learn from failure as much as from success. 

Any physical activity can be a great example of using this checklist.

Let’s use this one: Imag…