Goal setting is a powerful tool to assist your client in thinking about their ideal future and make action plans towards it. It can also motivate them, and turn their vision into reality.
It gives short term steps to long term visions, and has been used in corporate business and top-level athletes. Similarly, it can be used in the healthcare system.
As your client progressively achieve their short term goals, they will take pride in those little accomplishments, and their motivation and drive may amplify further towards the long term goal.
That is why it is important for us as healthcare clinicians to equip ourselves with the right skills in effective goal-setting. In this page, you will learn more about how to do this. We will specifically discuss the SMART principles; a framework that is well known to many people around the world. Read and scroll below to deepen your understanding about this topic.
SMART principles
The SMART mnemonic is a well-established and well-known framework for goal setting.
There are many variants of the SMART mnemonic, however it usually stands for Specific, Measurable, Acceptable, Realistic and Time-bound.
To learn more, or refresh your memory about the SMART principles, click on each icon below.
When setting goals, ensure that accountability is set to the individual by using “I” statement. It also helps develop partnership with the person and fosters ownership of the goal for the individual.
For example:
“I want to be able to walk 500 metres to my local shops without stopping and without having pain more than 5/10 within 3 months”
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