Set Smart Goals
We live in an age where we bring a lot of our work home; it’s unavoidable. The lines have blurred between the workday and family life, with duties crisscrossing back and forth day and night. It’s the world we live in. We can probably blame it on increasing competition, never ending demands, limited resources at work, and the desire to be active in our children’s development. We can also probably thank technology for allowing us to get it all done.
One thing I have definitely brought home from work for this back-to-school period is SMART goals. Anyone in human resources or anyone who has filled out a performance review at work has heard of SMART goals.
1. SMART
At work, when we list out our goals for the period, we always strive to make them SMART
- Specific
- Measureable
- Attainable
- Realistic
- Timely
I find back-to-school to be one of the most hectic and stressful times of the year. My kids are in college and graduate school now and it’s almost worse. Everything has to be ready for day one. So there’s a lot of planning, and buying, and sorting, and moving that has to happen all at once…all while you are finishing up summer and getting ready for an intense period at work as well.
2. Goals
So I list out SMART goals like this
- Specific: I list out what has to be done and who is responsible for doing it.
- Measureable: I make a checklist and we knock off the items that are complete so that we can focus on those that still have to be tackled.
- Attainable: I do the heavy lifting, but I make sure the kids have responsibility for some items that I know they can handle.
- Realistic: I try to not go too crazy with too much all at once, especially in the shopping and moving areas. There’s only so much time and so much money to go around. But I do make sure I have a budget and a timeline so that we are tracking realistically against the ultimate goal of getting back to school
- Timely: Well, this one is easy. We have to get those butts in chairs on day one and there’s no missing that deadline. Just to make sure it’s not a mad scramble at the end, we keep track of our checklist and how we are progressing as the day gets closer and closer.
3. Enjoy
Most importantly, enjoy it. Time goes by so fast. Trust me, I know. My kids are in their twenties now. This year’s back-to-school season was far more burdensome on them then on me, but that’s just the natural evolution of their development as they go about their lives.
Truth be told, I miss the good old days. I raised my two children in a very untraditional family during a very unique time in our culture. While I enjoyed every minute of it and wouldn’t change anything for the world, as they say, it was very hard. There were days that I didn’t think we’d make it and most days I felt very much alone. But alas, we did indeed make it.
