Having trouble setting goals for yourself? Follow the SMART method:
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Well, it’s that time of year again. New Year Resolution time. New Year, New You right?
Don’t forget that making professional resolutions – resolutions relating to your career - are just as important as resolutions relating to your health and wellness.
Here are my Professional Goals for 2010:
1. Complete University and receive my undergraduate degree
- This may seem like an obvious one since I’m done school in the spring but like they say, ‘it ain’t over till it’s over’ so my main goal is to receive my undergraduate degree come spring.
2. Continue freelancing and build a larger client base
- I need to network/market myself more and apply for more opportunities.
- I’m currently working on creating a professional website for myself and I plan on launching that sometime this week. I’m hoping this will be helpful in reaching out to possible freelance clients.
- Right now I have a small freelance client base but I would love to increase it and ideally, by the end of the year, I’d like to be bringing in $500-$1000 from freelance revenue (about double what I make now).
- I need to network more. I know this. I’m going to work on this a lot over the next 12 months.
3. Write, write, write and write some more
- Through this blog and freelancing I want to continue writing as much as possible and maybe (maybe?) even start working on some ideas for a novel.
- Look into taking a creative writing course.
4. Grow my blog traffic and start gaining some revenue from it
- I love this blog a lot and it is definitely my baby – I put a lot of time and effort into it so it would be great if I could get a little bit of ROI from it. Except, other then google Ads I really have no idea how to do that. Any tips?
- Right now I receive approximately 3,500 page views a month. I’d love to double that by the end of this year and grow my blog traffic by 40-50%. So, if anyone has any tips for how to make my blog better, I’d love to hear them!
5. Learn as much as possible about marketing and communications
- I want to learn more about creating strategic marketing and communication plans for companies and learn more about website design.
- Right now my title is Account Assistant so I assist the Consultants with projects, by the end of the year I’d like to be closer to being able to manage projects on my own.
- I also want to expand my knowledge and experience with social media as a marketing/communication tool.
6. Take a course in website design/writing HTML
- Come Fall, I’d like to take a night course in website design and HTML.
- Practice the things I learn on this blog andmy other site (once it’s done) so that one day I’ll be able to offer the services professionally.
Do you set professional goals? If so, what are your professional goals for 2010?
Also, I’d like to use today’s discussion as a platform for advice; so if anyone has any advice for me r.e. my professional goals or would like to offer up advice to any of the other commenters please do so!
{ 28 comments… read them below or add one }
No professional advice, just professional cheerleading. *smile* Good luck with your goals, I’m a big fan of the “SMART” goal setting approach. xo
Hmm.. I need to work on networking too, I’m just so bad at it! Any advice on how to do it right/best would be helpful.
I think your goals sound great! I love how motivated in your work you are. My professional goals are probably just continue to do well in school and find an internship for the summer that could possibly lead into a full time job after graduation. Last summer, I was working in finance, but I think this summer I really want to find something in marketing.
Oh, I also have a question that I’ve been meaning to ask you and it sort of falls under this topic. I’m helping my boyfriend set up his website for his business.. if I have a wordpress.com blog how do I switch that to a .com with godaddy as the host? Does that even make sense? haha I don’t even know enough about this stuff to ask the right question.
Sorry for such a scattered post! Good luck with all your goals!
Caroline- Do you mean if you have a wordpress.com blog, how do you move it to your own domain? If you are simply purchasing a domain name on godaddy.com, you can actually point your wordpress blog to that domain name. It’s really easy to do- you do it within the godaddy site. You can even mask it, so that people only see the “.com” address, not the wordpress address. You would still be hosting it with wordpress, it is basically just redirected so that you can give out your “.com” address. If you want to host with godaddy, that’s another story! Let me know if you want more details- it’s pretty simple to do once you’ve purchased the domain name, and I’d be happy to help!
Great goals! My only professional “real life job” goal is just to learn as much about pharma marketing as I can, and to get involved in my company since I’ve only been here for a couple months.
My personal professional goal is to get more involved in diabetes advocacy at its core: political advocacy. I did more of that when I was in high school, but there is more that needs to be done!
I also just want to finish my 101 Things List. LOL. That’s enough of a goal, I think!
I’m in a similar boat – I will have been at my company a year in May but I definitely want to get more involved and learn AS MUCH as I can!
I usually set professional goals… I haven’t done so yet, but I plan on doing so. I have been on vacation for two weeks, so it’s hard to get back into the professional mindset! But this post is great food for thought!
Question for you- what do you use to track your page views? I thought I had done it properly, buy mine is just not tracking.
Also, do you host your domain name? I bought mine, but I actually just point it, so maybe that is part of the problem with my tracking?
I use Google Analytics and sitemeter! Google Analytics works great for me but it does take a few days to start tracking, I think.
That might be your problem. I self-host my blog on ipower. If you bought a domain then you should be able to self-host rather than pointing your wordpress or blogger blog too it. I haven’t had very many problems with self-hosting!
I love your goals for 2010. I took an HTML/web design class this fall and I learned so much great stuff. I can’t wait to start testing it all out!
We use the SMART method in my office and my MBA classes really enforce it as well =)
All of these goals sound amazing; I’d definitely like to hear more about the blog goals you have in mind for yourself and how you are going to put them into action.
The only thing I can offer up with regards to the professional goals: just realizing they will all take some time and not be too hard on yourself is the best advice I can give! You’ll be great as always =)
I love your goals! You are obviously really motivated.
Where are you creating your own professional web site? I’m interested in doing that, as well.
I have been using dreamweaver to make it. It was hard to learn at first but then really easy once I got used to it! I just have a few more tweaks and then I will be announcing the URL on the blog
I am a little behind and haven’t made my resolutions yet, but I will definitely keep the SMART method in mind when I do!
Those sound like wonderful goals. I’ve been toying with the idea of taking a creative writing class, too – I started writing a book what must’ve been 3-4 years ago now, and just totally stopped putting any effort in, but I’d really like to get back to it. I’d really like to grow my blog traffic too – but I’m kind of a noob on the blogging block, and I know there are zillions of social media networking sites I’m *not* on, but I have no idea how I’d find the time to keep up with anything on top of FB, blogs, 20sb and Twitter!! If you find something please share? *Bats eyelashes*
Best of luck with all your goals – I know you’ll do amazingly
I have enough trouble keeping up with the social media sites that I’m on so I doubt I’ll be joining any new ones. My blog has grown a lot over the last year though so I just have to hope it will continue to grow! I think the best way to put yourself out there is by reading and commenting on other blogs!
Love your ideas! For blogging- just keep going. I think that making friends, networking and writing regularly is the best thing to do.
And wow with the detail on your goals!! This year I kept mine extremely simple so I know I can keep up with it as I tend to overload. The perfectionist in me is dying to set a 4 page document of goals and sub goals though! lol
Thanks for the advice, Kyla!
I am usually really vague with my goals but I decided that this year I would be more specific – something to try and see if it works for me. This is my first time ever setting professional goals so we’ll see how it goes!
I’m sorry. It’s not you. But I HATE smart goals. So much. Mostly because once upon a time I had a boss who LOVED them and LIVED by them and tried to force them down all her employees throats. I actually get angry when I think about smart goals. Weird huh? I’m sure they will help you a lot, but please, if you are ever in a position of power or authority, let people accomplish their goals using their own methods and motivations! Don’t be my (ex) boss! Yes I am aware I have issues. Rant over
Oh no! That’s no good. Sorry my post triggered your crappy experience with your boss!!
LOL that’s funny we have HPC’s at my work, high proformance contracts, and we have to sure SMART. And yes i hate it, i can see how it can work wonderfully, but i’m just not good at going back to my contact during the year and seeing my progress. The idea is so set goals and then go back throughout the year and check off what you’ve done and add or take away things your not even working on. I’m also not good at setting specific goals……only because i know i’ll have to give myself a review at the end of the year and i just can’t brag about my successes, i have always been the silent type in that department.
Your goals look great though! I always have networking on mine…..i’m terrible about it, there are so many things i could get into but plain and simple i don’t care enough to make the effort. That’s just because its for my job, all your stuff involves things your excited about. I would say ask your boss about work related net working, he/she should be more then willing to give you a list or idea’s. Plus if you go to your boss it’ll how enthusiastic you are about working there and the projects your working on. Everyone loves a team player ;p and the other networking you should be able to google and find groups specific to outside work things…….then just go.
i think i just rambled……..first day back to work since Dec 17th and an hour and half left before home time lol ;p
I feel like I have a lot of similar goals, just on a much smaller level. You seem to be about a year ahead of me, as I’m just now starting an internship, networking more, receiving more blog traffic, and seeking freelancing opportunities.
I would like to start freelancing but I don’t know where to start! (Any ideas?) And I have found that it’s TRUE! If you get active in social media and websites dedicated to blogging, comment on other blogs, and develop relationships between bloggers – you do get more traffic/comments on your blog. I just want to continue improving on my blogging skills and possibly moving to my own domain name sometime this year as well.
And I just hope I do well at the internship I start next week. I’m very nervous about it, since I’ve had some awful internship experiences.
Good luck on your goals!
Great goals Amber! I’ve been toying with the idea of taking a few similar classes – creative writing, web design, etc. I want to pay for those things with cash though, so I have a little debt repayment to take care of first.
You def. have some attainable goals – GOOD LUCK
Hey there! You have some pretty lofty professional goals set — I’m looking forward to reading about how you attain them in 2010.
I’m Ashley, and I just stumbled upon your blog — I love it!
I don’t have any real advice for you, just admiration for all your professional goals. Good luck !(not that you’ll need it)
You know, I haven’t thought a lot about my professional goals beyond just doing well at the things I’m already doing. I think it’s something I should think about more carefully.
What a great set of goals. I usually set goals for myself at work in terms of promotions, etc. Right now since I am new to my position, I am just setting the goal of figuring out how in the heck to do my job and balance the time commitment!
I have a lot of professional goals for 2010 … I need to get more organized at work and stay on top of the things that I don’t enjoy doing, but need to do – like marking work.
Good for you for setting these professional goals! I need to go through and write my list for the year, especially since I am basically going to be living off freelance! Exciting and scary stuff!