<p>We are often told that in order to achieve our goals they should be SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound). The woman’s goal was arguably SMART. That it was clearly specific, measurable, achievable and time-bound seems to be implied (now). Whether it was realistic or not is hard to say, but clearly, she thought it might be and it’s not out of the question that someone might have had a pocket knife. And like any good goal achiever, she certainly had a lot of persistence to see through her task.</p> <p>So good for her, right? Not so fast.</p> <p>Upon reflection, this woman had the wrong goal. She tripped up on the “specific” part of a SMART goal. It’s not that she failed in not asking for a specific type of knife — would asking “Do you have a pocket knife?” really have yielded better results? Probably not.</p> <p>The problem was that she was focused on a specific method for achieving a goal, not the goal of having something to take notes with. This is a common mistake in goal setting, and it’s even taught in some goal-setting courses.</p> <p>Still, there was one more part of this woman’s quest that, while appearing SMART, wasn’t as SMART as it could be. Asking for help with your goals is important, both for achieving your goals and for doing so as quickly as possible. Rather than rummaging around herself, she did take the admirable step of asking others if they were able to help her. It was fast, too — “Do you have a knife?” Yes or no? Move on. While asking a closed-ended question is fast, it does not empower the people you are asking to find another solution. A closed-ended question ends the conversation. Sometimes that’s helpful, but, as in this case, an open-ended question may have allowed her to reach her goals earlier.</p> <p><strong>What Should You Do Instead?&nbsp;</strong></p> <p>Before launching full speed into pursuing your goal, take a moment assess your goal and think about how you’ll interpret the results you get along the way. To start, evaluate how your goal fits with your vision and purpose.</p> <p><strong>Your vision is what you are looking to create.</strong> In the case of the conference attendee, her vision was to take notes on the presentations she was watching. Whether she was taking notes with her pencil, someone else’s pencil or even a pen probably didn’t matter. It’s possible she had a bigger vision <span>—</span> simply to record the information she was hearing — and so a voice or video recording may have met her need as well. Ask yourself: What is it you ultimately need or want?</p> <p><strong>Your purpose is your “why.”</strong> Why are you trying to achieve this vision? This is important to know because it will both influence how you go about creating your vision and provide the motivation to continue when achieving your goal becomes difficult. Our note-taking conference attendee was certainly connected to her purpose, as she asked person after person for a knife. She was relentless in seeking to achieve her goal because it meant something important to her.</p> <p>Lastly, take some time to evaluate the results you are receiving as you work toward achieving your goal. Are you succeeding or failing? During the process is the time to check in with yourself to make sure your goal is the right one or that you still want to achieve it. Or maybe the way you’re going about achieving your goal isn’t right. A different approach may be in order. Often we don’t really know the answers to these questions until we start working at achieving them. Achieving a goal you don’t want may be worse than failing to achieve it.</p> <p>Most importantly, make sure the goals you set are achieving what you truly need. Now that’s smart.</p>” readability=”122″>

I was attending a conference of business economists when, in the break between speakers, I noticed woman frantically pacing the rows of people asking a question. Each shook their head and she moved along.

As she came closer, I could hear her question: “Do you have a knife?”

It’s an odd object to ask for at a conference, especially in Washington, D.C. where security is tight. Finding a knife in this crowd was highly unlikely. I thought I’d suggest she should go to the kitchen and ask for one. Finally, she got to me and asked, “Do you have a knife?”

Like everyone who came before me, I said no. As she turned toward the next person, I asked, “Why do you need a knife?”

“I can’t find a pencil sharpener. So I need a knife to sharpen my pencil so I can take notes,” she answered.

“I have a pencil you use.” I handed her the pencil, she thanked me and said, “I don’t know why I didn’t think of that.”

You might be thinking my question was obvious. In hindsight, yes it is obvious, but still, no one else asked it. She asked over 30 people if they had a knife and not one had asked her why, nor did she change her question or goal.

What can we learn from this about how to better achieve our own goals?

SMART Goals Aren’t Always Smart

We are often told that in order to achieve our goals they should be SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound). The woman’s goal was arguably SMART. That it was clearly specific, measurable, achievable and time-bound seems to be implied (now). Whether it was realistic or not is hard to say, but clearly, she thought it might be and it’s not out of the question that someone might have had a pocket knife. And like any good goal achiever, she certainly had a lot of persistence to see through her task.

So good for her, right? Not so fast.

Upon reflection, this woman had the wrong goal. She tripped up on the “specific” part of a SMART goal. It’s not that she failed in not asking for a specific type of knife — would asking “Do you have a pocket knife?” really have yielded better results? Probably not.

The problem was that she was focused on a specific method for achieving a goal, not the goal of having something to take notes with. This is a common mistake in goal setting, and it’s even taught in some goal-setting courses.

Still, there was one more part of this woman’s quest that, while appearing SMART, wasn’t as SMART as it could be. Asking for help with your goals is important, both for achieving your goals and for doing so as quickly as possible. Rather than rummaging around herself, she did take the admirable step of asking others if they were able to help her. It was fast, too — “Do you have a knife?” Yes or no? Move on. While asking a closed-ended question is fast, it does not empower the people you are asking to find another solution. A closed-ended question ends the conversation. Sometimes that’s helpful, but, as in this case, an open-ended question may have allowed her to reach her goals earlier.

What Should You Do Instead? 

Before launching full speed into pursuing your goal, take a moment assess your goal and think about how you’ll interpret the results you get along the way. To start, evaluate how your goal fits with your vision and purpose.

Your vision is what you are looking to create. In the case of the conference attendee, her vision was to take notes on the presentations she was watching. Whether she was taking notes with her pencil, someone else’s pencil or even a pen probably didn’t matter. It’s possible she had a bigger vision — simply to record the information she was hearing — and so a voice or video recording may have met her need as well. Ask yourself: What is it you ultimately need or want?

Your purpose is your “why.” Why are you trying to achieve this vision? This is important to know because it will both influence how you go about creating your vision and provide the motivation to continue when achieving your goal becomes difficult. Our note-taking conference attendee was certainly connected to her purpose, as she asked person after person for a knife. She was relentless in seeking to achieve her goal because it meant something important to her.

Lastly, take some time to evaluate the results you are receiving as you work toward achieving your goal. Are you succeeding or failing? During the process is the time to check in with yourself to make sure your goal is the right one or that you still want to achieve it. Or maybe the way you’re going about achieving your goal isn’t right. A different approach may be in order. Often we don’t really know the answers to these questions until we start working at achieving them. Achieving a goal you don’t want may be worse than failing to achieve it.

Most importantly, make sure the goals you set are achieving what you truly need. Now that’s smart.