Goal Setting - Be SMART

I am just home from another incredibly inspiring Pampered Chef Team Meeting! Wow! Why can't my 'real job' be as exhilarating as these evenings?! The mood is always so light, the food delicious (and plentiful), and the energy so contagious!

Among our 'homework', we are to set our business' goal for the next 90 days. In fact, our director gave us this beautiful, little flowerpot and Forget-Me-Not seeds to remind us to nurture and grow our business. How sweet eh?!


Since, I came home from my last Pampered Chef workshop full of energy, there was also a lot of confusion about where to direct it. With my radio broken in my car (go figure), I drove home in silence tonight, and I was really able to think about where I want to go with my Pampered Chef business.

I turned around in my head everything I want to do with my Pampered Chef income; pave my driveway, buy a printer, pay down some student debt, save money. These are all goals, but what do I strive for first or how do I capture this? Then, I decided to try applying the "SMART" approach we use at my 'real job' .

SMART goals are:

• Specific


• Measurable


• Attainable


• Realistic


• Timely

Specific: I already know what I want to get out of PC. More money so I can buy a printer and pave my driveway, in addition to some of that other good stuff.

Measurable: If I need $3000 for the above, then I know exactly how many shows I need to book to generate this income. If I am not on target for a month, I will know if I need to get more bookings.

Attainable: While I have not yet had five shows in one month, I know that I have the time on my calender and energy personally to successfully hold five shows per month. This is do-able, yet still a challenge, because I will need to actively pursue bookings.

Realistic: Along those same lines, while five shows will be a challenge and I will be busy, it is possible for me to achieve. Ten would not be, especially since I want to provide excellent service and support to my hosts.

Timely: For me, there really isn't a better time than spring and summer to let my business take off. If I move out the 90 day window to 120 (end of August), this is the latest I want to achieve my goal. By fall, the real life will take over again, so 'end of summer' is my deadline.

After thinking these through, I came up with my goal:

By making three contacts a day, successfully coaching my hosts and holding five shows per month, I will earn enough income to purchase a new printer, pave my driveway and paint my spare room by the end of summer.

It's so clear now, not only WHAT I want, but HOW I am going to get it. I even recorded it on my phone to listen to daily and posted it at my workspace, on my kitchen fridge and bathroom mirror (all places that I will see daily to remind me to get going). What aspects of your life could use SMART goals?