SMART GOALS & PYGMALION EFFECT

The discussion in class was in continuation to the Tower Building exercise on Goal Settings done in the previous class. The concept that we learnt this time around was that of SMART goals.

What does SMART goals mean?

S.M.A.R.T. is an acronym for the 5 steps of specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based goals. It’s a simple tool used by businesses to go beyond the realm of fuzzy goal-setting into an actionable plan for results.

Specific: Great goals are well-defined and focused. A specific goal has a much greater chance of being accomplished than a general goal. To set a specific goal you must answer the six “W” questions:

*Who *What *Where*When*Which*Why. EXAMPLE:  A general goal would be to Get in shape.But a specific goal would be to Join a health club and workout 3 days a week.

Measurable: : Goal objectives should include numeric or descriptive measures that define quantity, 

quality, cost, etc. In the broadest sense, the whole goal statement is a measure for the project; if the goal is accomplished, the is a success. However, there are usually several short-term or small measurements that can be built into the goal. When you measure your progress, you stay on track, reach your target dates, and experience the exhilaration of achievement that spurs you on to continued effort required to reach your goal.

Attainable: Goal objectives should be within the employee's control and influence; a goal may 

be a “stretch” but still feasible. When you identify goals that are most important to you, you begin to figure out ways you can make them come true. You develop that attitudes, abilities, skills, and financial capacity to reach them. 

Relevant: : Goals should be instrumental to the mission of the department (and ultimately, the institution). A realistic project may push the skills and knowledge of the people working on it but it shouldn’t break them. The bar should be set high enough for a satisfying achievement.

Time-Bound: Business goals and objectives just don’t get done when there's no time frame tied to the goal-setting process. A goal should be grounded within a time frame. With no time frame tied to it there’s no sense of urgency.Goal objectives should identify a definite target date for completion and/or frequencies for specific action steps that are important for achieving the goal.

T can also stand for Tangible – A goal is tangible when you can experience it with one of the senses, that is, taste, touch, smell, sight or hearing.

When your goal is tangible you have a better chance of making it specific and measurable and thus attainable.

Pygmalion Effect:

The Pygmalion effect was described by J. Sterling Livingston in the September/October, 1988 Harvard Business Review. "The way managers treat their subordinates is subtly influenced by what they expect of them," Livingston said in his article,Pygmalion in Management.

The Pygmalion effect, is the phenomenon in which the greater the expectation placed upon people, the better they perform.Also, low expectations lead to a decrease in performance. 

To understand the cycle of expectations and performance complement we also discussed the Fibonacci spiral and how the chain reaction leads to a rapid increase in performance.