Management Goal Setting: From SMART to WISE

As a leader, you’re used to setting goals. But are the goals you’re setting really as powerful as they could be? Goals help us to cut through the clutter of a crowded mind and keep our thoughts on the things that matter most. They help us focus. To be effective, you can’t just set random goals the way many people do- long lists of wishes that pop up at random and eventually fall away.


In the business world, we’ve been trained to set SMART goals: specific, measurable, action-oriented, realistic and time-bound. “SMART” goals have helped many people move from vague unattainable goals to clear, specific action.

The problem with SMART thinking is that it has a tendency to limit instead of inspire. SMART goals can work against you if:

• You neglect to write them and keep them fresh.
• They’re isolated from other important parts of your life.
• They conflict or compete.
• They lack spirit and conviction.

To avoid these pitfalls, make sure your goals are both SMART and WISE. WISE goals are written, integrated, synergistic and expansive. Using these criteria to improve your goals will transform them into a more powerful approach.

Written
Writing your goals is a critical step- and one many people miss. Writing forces you to be clear in your thinking. It allows you to look at your plans with objectivity. It instills commitment and puts your thoughts in a durable form you can revisit again and again.

Integrated
Integrating your ideas means bringing them together in the same place so you can look at them all at once. Allow your personal and professional lives to intermingle. It’s okay if right under “increase profit share” you have “get more rest”. They both improve your quality of life. They both contribute to your definition of success.

Synergistic
Whereas integrating your goals means bringing them together, synergizing means making them work together. Synergy happens when one ideas advances another. Keeping a vision of what you want in mind when you think about your goals will help create that synergy.

Expansive

Think big. Your goals should inspire you to stay on the path to your dreams, not lock you into a pattern of ticking off bite-sized action items from here to retirement. This may be the biggest differentiators between
SMART and WISE thinking. Spending too much time and energy boxing your objectives into a hard and fast formula can squeeze the life out of them. Some examples:

SMART Goal- Schedule team-building and strategic planning off site by the end of January.


WISE Goal- Transform my staff into a team of inspired, empowered partners.

SMART Goal- Leave work by 6:00 P.M. three times a week, organize my office and work with my assistant to find new planning system in one month.

WISE Goal- Feel in control of my life.

SMART Goal- Go on a date with my wife at least twice a month and tell her why I appreciate her at least once a day starting September 3rd.

WISE Goal- Fall in love again.

The best goals are both smart and wise. SMART thinking gives your goals specificity. WISE thinking gives them heart.

How do you set your goals for your organization? Let me know what works for you.

Bobby Bland PWCA, CIC
Vice President
Commercial Risk Service