How do you set smart dating goals for the new year? You have probably heard of SMART goals in business, but did you know that you can apply that to your love life as well? Goal setting is a skill, and if you make unachievable New Year’s resolutions, there’s a very high chance that you’ll never even try to accomplish them.
If you want to get better at setting and achieving goals in your dating life, you’ll be more successful when you follow this acronym.
Set SMART dating goals. SMART stands for:
- Specific: Achieving goals demands focus and specificity. You can’t make vague generalities and expect your dreams to come true. State exactly what you want to accomplish, and be as specific as possible.
- Measurable: Many people set goals but don’t know whether or not they’ve achieved them. If you say, “I want to be successful,” what constitutes success? Make sure you have measurable goals with a specific framework for achievement.
- Attainable: You need to be able to attain your goals. It’s helpful to write down your action steps so you know what you must do to succeed. It’s good to feel challenged, but you also need to create goals that are possible to attain.
- Realistic: Your objective must be within the realm of your possibility. If you can’t envision yourself doing it, you won’t achieve it. Just because your friend can run a mile in seven minutes, it doesn’t mean it’s realistic for you.
- Timely: Whenever you set a goal, you should have a target date to achieve it. Setting a goal to lose twenty pounds in two weeks can be very discouraging. Also, a deadline too far in the future can make you put it off until a later date, which can easily turn into you never trying to achieve your goal.
Let’s say you desperately want to be in a long-term relationship. You can set smart dating goals for the new year and make your New Year’s resolution come true.
Specific:
If you want to be in a committed relationship, you must specify exactly what that means to you. Who do you want to date? What kind of traits does this potential partner have? Where does he/she live?
Measurable:
How will you know if you are in a long-term relationship? Do you just require a Facebook status of “in a relationship” to satisfy your needs, or do you want to have a deep conversation about your status and mutually agree to date exclusively?
Attainable:
Are you in the right mindset to be in a relationship right now? If you’re still going through a heartbreak from a previous partner, then finding someone new may not be attainable for the time being. Also, make sure you fully know who you are and feel ready to open your heart to someone else.
Realistic:
Is your goal of being in a long-term relationship within reach? If you feel emotionally and mentally ready for love, and you don’t have much baggage from your past, then it may be realistic for you.
Timely:
When do you want to achieve your goal? If you set this goal as a New Year’s resolution, then perhaps a year is a good amount of time to give yourself. Or, if you’re in a rush due to your age or another factor, then you can decide if six months is enough time.