Have you ever set a lofty and altogether worthwhile goal only to see it all crash and burn a couple weeks later? You had the best intentions, bought all the books, grabbed the gear, maybe even started a personal YouTube vlog to capture every victorious moment and yet…kaput. You fell off the horse. Called it quits. Conceded defeat. Threw in the towel. Despite all that enthusiasm and motivation, it was all for naught. Somehow, the goal just didn’t stick and you’ve slipped back into your old comfy habits once again.

I don’t think I need to tell you that making changes can be tough, especially if you’re staring down a particularly ingrained habit. Squaring off against your second nature takes more than just a wing and a prayer, my friends. Nope, winging it just won’t cut it. So if you’re serious about making changes, take the time to sit down, focus your thoughts, and create a goal worth chasing. Though setting a goal might seem like an exercise in the obvious, a thoughtful goal can truly spell the difference between success and failure.

So what does effective goal setting look like? You’ve probably heard of that old acronym, ‘S.M.A.R.T.’ when it comes to goal setting. If not, here’s a little refresher. Goals should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant (or Realistic), and Time-bound. To flesh this out, let’s take a classic New Year’s resolution and give it a S.M.A.R.T. makeover. We’ll start with:

I want to lose weight.

How can we make this a more effective goal? To start, let’s consider how this goal could be more Specific. Though wanting to lose weight may seem straightforward enough, this goal is definitely vague. One obvious choice might be to add a certain number of pounds, inches you’d like to shed, or some other specific outcome. Let’s go with,

I want to lose 25 pounds and fit into my old, favorite jeans.

Not only have we made the goal much more Specific, but now it is also Measurable, right? One can simply pop onto the scale or wriggle into those jeans to see how things are progressing. Just like the mile markers in a race, a measurable goal will help you stay on track and focused on that finish line.

What if, however, your goal was something like, I’d like to lose 50 pounds by next Tuesday and get on the cover of People Magazine? Now we’re looking at whether the goal you’ve set is actually Achievable. Though I like folks to set a goal that is motivating and exciting to pursue, choosing a goal that’s nearly impossible is a waste of time, emotion, and energy. Yeah, it’s exciting to watch those extreme weight loss shows or read those transformation testimonials, but remember that such results are typically out of reach for mere mortals living in the real world (and not at a fitness compound). Keep your goal Achievable.

Moving on to goals that are Relevant or Realistic, this is where the rubber meets the road. You’ve got a goal that’s Specific, Measurable, and Achievable, but is it actually Realistic? Let’s go back to our weight loss goal, I want to lose 25 pounds and fit into my old jeans. Sounds good on paper, but let’s say you haven’t fit into those bad boys for over 20 years and every time you have managed to shed some pounds, you’ve yet to squeeze back into those bitty jeans. Though I won’t be the one to tell you to let go of that dream, maybe your goal simply isn’t Realistic. And hey, if those favorite jeans have been up in the attic for the last 20 years, maybe your goal isn’t Relevant either!

Finally, an effective goal should be Time-bound. Giving some sort of timeframe or end point to your goal will help you have a clear finish line and just enough pressure to stay focused to the end. Just like it’s easy to put off an assignment with no deadline, a goal with no timeframe is easy to push to the ole’ backburner. So let’s put the finishing touches on our example, shall we?

I’d like to lose 25 pounds and fit into my old, favorite jeans by March 6th by losing approximately 2 pounds per week.

Now we’ve got a goal that is S.M.A.R.T.–it’s Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant (or Realistic), and Time-bound. With your new and improved S.M.A.R.T. goal in hand, you are now ready to create a solid action plan that will take you all the way to the finish line!