How to Make SMART Goals for Moms

Does your goal setting typically start with you having huge dreams and looking forward to the future and then abruptly ending in complete and utter disaster a few short weeks or months later?

You’re definitely not alone. Only 8% of people actually achieve their goals and it’s because those people learned how to effectively plan.

It’s easy to be motivated when you’re on that high, but what happens when you get knocked down the first or second time? Do you get back up and keep going or does that fire dwindle quickly and you throw in the towel?

If there’s anything I’ve learned it’s that there are three very important components to achieving anything you want out of life. Your ‘Why’, SMART goals, and accountability.

Let’s help you make some goals you can achieve!

Your Why is the Most Important Piece

This concept is pretty rampant throughout my blog and for a good reason.

Do you know why a baby falls 8 bajillion (yah that’s a made-up word) times, and always gets back up? Because their drive and motivation to do what the big kids do far outweighs the blow to their non-existent ego or a few boo-boos along the way.

They want so badly to be able to keep up with their big sister or follow mom to the bathroom (so she doesn’t have any privacy) that they ignore the fact they fell down and focus on the big picture: learning to walk.

Their ‘Why’ far exceeds any setback they may experience.

If you’re going to achieve any goal in life, no matter how big or small, you need to start with your ‘Why’. The difference between a goal seeming completely unachievable or hard, but totally doable is how strong your ‘Why’ is when you set the goal.

Your ‘Why’ will be the reason you stand back up 8 bajillion and one times to hit your goal.

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Dig Deep to Find Your Why

Your ‘Why’ shouldn’t really be that easy to come up with. If it is, you need to ask ‘why?’ at least 5 times to get to the root of your motivation. It really has to pull you towards your goals and propel you forward.

Throughout this article I’m going to use myself and my blog as an example.

Ask Why 5 Times

• I want to start a blog. – Why?
• Because I need a creative outlet and I want to help other moms. – Why?
• Because I felt lost as a new working mom and you also tend to lose your sense of self as a new mom so I want to be able to connect with others who feel the same and also help them where I may have a skill set they can benefit from. – Why?
• I want to show my children that their mom can be successful, provide for them, be happy, and help others all at the same time. – Why?
• Because I feel society has morphed working moms into something we aren’t and with a little support I believe working moms can have the life they want to live and not feel guilty about it.

My Ultimate Why that Drives my SMART Goals

The first thing I had to figure out when I first considered starting this blog was ‘My Why’. I knew that this blog could take years before anyone would read it let alone help other women!

On average, blogs can take 1-2 years to gain traction. If my Why wasn’t strong enough, I would have given up week 1 when I found that out.

Did you know that I’ve been blogging since July 2020 consistently and have “lost” money doing it?

I knew that if I wanted to make this blog a reality, I’d need to invest in myself and my education in a whole new realm of learning.

I knew that if I wanted to help other women and be an example to my kids through this blog, I’d need to invest at minimum 2 years of my time and money before I could even see results.

I’m still here chugging along and I can guarantee I’ll still be here in 2 years because that’s how strong my Why is.

I promised myself and my kids that I wouldn’t give up. So I won’t.

That’s how strong your Why needs to be. Got it?

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What are SMART Goals?

Simple and to the point, SMART goals are meant to provide you with all the “tools” needed to achieve your goals by lining out the goal in a way that ensures all components are thought of, upfront.

SMART goals are very thorough and deliberate to ensure the greatest chance of success.

Why are SMART Goals so Great?

Their totally awesome because you aren’t leaving anything out if you follow the model below. It’s pretty hard to fail at a SMART goal if you really want it and you’ve thought through all the necessary pieces to achieve the goal.

What are the Components of a SMART Goal?

I’ll use examples any working mom can relate to so you can see how you can implement SMART goals in your life.

Specific

Your goal needs to be very specific. It can not be generic because that leaves way too much room for interpretation and you won’t know if you actually achieved what you said you would.

• I want to lose 30 pounds and 10 inches.
• I want to implement uninterrupted self-care into my weekly routine.

Measurable

In order to hit your goals, you need to be able to measure it along the way. It’s important to have an end date, but also know how far along you are on any given day as well.

• I will track my weight and inches lost each Friday and will document in a food diary daily.
• I will schedule 1 hour of self-care in my calendar each Thursday.

Attainable (or Achievable)

Now, it’s not really realistic to set a goal of losing 30 pounds in 1 week. That’s neither healthy nor attainable. You’ll only lose motivation and set yourself up for failure. Try this instead:

• I will aim to lose 1 pound each week.
• I will make sure I schedule baby coverage during my self-care hour one month ahead of time.

Realistic

You wouldn’t really set a SMART goal of winning the lotto since you have absolutely no control over that. You also wouldn’t set a goal of becoming an Olympic athlete if you have no interest in sports. Your goals need to be realistic and relevant to you and your life.

• I want to be a healthy weight so I can play with my kids and live longer.
• I need to focus on my mental health so I can be a better mom to my kids.

Time-Bound

Here’s where you start adding due dates or deadlines for smaller goals along the way. You can’t just set one deadline at the end of the goal, you’ll burn out and you will lose motivation quickly.

• I want to lose 30 pounds and 10 inches by June 30th and will check in each week with my health coach with my progress.
• I will commit to one hour per week of self-care for the next year.

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Examples of SMART Goals for Moms

Here’s the final outcome of these two examples we just worked thorugh. Notice I changed “want” to “will”. This simple trick will get you in the can-do mindset that you need to achieve goals.

I will lose 30 pounds (1 pound per week) and 10 inches so I can be healthier for myself and my kids. I will hit my goal by tracking my progress through a daily food journal and weight/inches tracker each Friday. I will check in with my health coach each week to review my progress and adjust if necessary to hit by goal by June 30th.

I will implement uninterrupted self-care into my weekly routine by scheduling one hour of time each Thursday now until the end of the year. I will also book child care for each Thursday one month before so I commit to improving my mental health so I can be a better mom to my kids.

Ensuring You Achieve your SMART Goals through Accountability

Setting a SMART goal may not take too long if you are very clear on your why and your goal.

However, that doesn’t automatically mean you’re just going to achieve all the things without any other tools in place.

It’s important to set up one other very important component before tackling any goal.

You need accountability and it can not be you.

Pick someone who believes in you. They need to care enough about you that they want to see you achieve everything you want in life no matter how crazy the idea.

This can be anyone. A spouse, partner, BFF or even a family member.

Once you choose this person, share your Why with them and your SMART goals.

Then, set up some check ins along the way so they can be your accountability partner.

You should check in consistently even if you haven’t achieved anything from the last time you met. This provide a safe space to bounce ideas off the person, get a little tough love or a little motivation to get you back on track.

Without this component, your goals will be a lot harder and undoubtedly will take a lot longer.

How to Implement SMART Goals into your #momlife

Let’s recap how to make and implement SMART goals for moms:

• Identify a goal you’d like to achieve
• Dig deep to find your Why – why do you want to achieve this goal?
• Ask Why 5 times until you’ve uncovered something that will keep you motivated along the journey
• Build out your SMART goal using this formula:
  • SPECIFIC
  • MEASURABLE
  • ATTAINABLE
  • REALISTIC
  • TIME-BOUND
• Hold yourself accountable with an accountability partner

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