It’s that time again! Time to say goodbye to one year, while welcoming in a brand-new 365-day sprint full of endless possibilities. You know what else that means? It’s time to make your New Year’s Resolutions!

I can hear the questions now: “What’s the point? Does anybody ever keep their New Year’s Resolutions?”

Well, sure. If you’re SMART about it…

The reason New Year’s Resolutions have a reputation of falling by the wayside somewhere around mid-January is because many people don’t build in parameters to ensure their success. Sure, we can resolve to “write more songs” and “play more shows,” but those vague proclamations don’t give us any true benchmarks.

That’s where the SMART goal setting philosophy comes in. The acronym SMART stands for:

Specific: Does your goal contain words that will inspire particular actions?
Measurable: Are there metrics/data benchmarks that signify success?
Achievable: Are the goals within your scope, and attainable within the established timeframe?
Relevant: Are your goals relevant to your overall mission?
Time-bound: Do your goals have a specific deadline?

There! Now you’re more empowered to set SMARTer goals than ever before. (See what we did there?)

If you’re looking for some ideas on how to put this philosophy into action, here are a few to get you started.