S.M.A.R.T. Goals for Actors

Habits

Apr 1

You’ve decided it’s time to set some acting goals. Excellent! But how do you set goals you’re excited to accomplish? Ones that you know you can finish once your burst of motivation is over?

I present to you…

S.M.A.R.T. goals!

In my first blog post I mentioned I would explain this in greater detail, and provided some examples of what effective objectives for actors look like. Now it’s time to dig into what S.M.A.R.T. goals are and how you can use them to give yourself a clear path to success.

S.M.A.R.T. goals were first introduced by George T. Doran, a corporate consultant, in the November 1981 issue of Management Review. The article was titled “There’s a S.M.A.R.T. way to write management’s goals and objectives”, and it took the business management world by storm. The S.M.A.R.T. method is now used in major corporations to create massive, company-wide initiatives as well as smaller, employee-specific quotas. It’s also recommended for weight loss, physiotherapy, and addiction recovery programs. There have been many variations and alterations to it over the years, but I’ll share my favorite iteration.

The premise of the S.M.A.R.T. system is simple. An effective goal is:

S - specific. M - measurable. A - achievable. R - relevant. T - time-bound

In order to clearly understand and actively work towards achieving your goal, you want it to be specific to you and your priorities. To know when you have made progress, it has to be measurable. An effective goal is within your power to achieve with your current abilities, but still challenging. It must be relevant to your longer term goals and priorities, keeping you motivated, and there has to be a deadline.

When writing out your intentions, it’s important that they be framed in a positive and actionable way. For example: “I will stop struggling to remember my lines” is not as strong as “I will do short term memory exercises to get better at remembering my lines”. The first example is focused exclusively on the problem and offers no action to achieve it, while the second is solution-focused and provides a clear path forward.

I’d recommend they also be something that you can achieve by yourself, rather than having it be dependent on someone else. “I will book a role on a television show” is dependent on the decisions of an agent, a casting director, a director, and a network executive, but “I will take three acting classes this year to get better at auditioning” is something you can do by yourself.

Let’s dive in and examine each aspect of the SMART method.

Goals need to be very clear and very specific. Not just in terms of their outcomes, but specific to you and your dreams and priorities. The goal “I want to be a famous actor” is not specific. But “I want to work as a lead actor on a network television sitcom” is specific. It tells you where you need to be focussing in terms of training and branding, and gives you a clear image to visualize.

When creating a specific goal, ask yourself:

Who needs to be involved?
What needs to happen?
Where does this need to be done?

Having a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish will make it easier to stay focussed and help you recognize which opportunities and projects are worth pursuing.

How can you tell that you’re making progress towards your goal? Attaching a metric makes it easier to stay committed because you can see results happening in real time. Our brains are optimized for seeking out immediate gratification, so finding ways to measure your success is critical to staying on track. Metrics can include:

Amount of time you can commit (20 minutes/day, 3 days/week, etc)
A specific number (5 emails/day, 3 acting exercises/week, etc)
Subtasks that make up that goal (filming a scene, booking a class, etc)

If you’re someone who needs spontaneity to keep things fresh, don’t be afraid to change or adjust the metric. The important thing to remember is you are looking for tangible proof that you’re making progress.

Is it physically possible for you to achieve your goal?
Can you do it alone?
What are your potential obstacles?

You want the answers to empower you, not overwhelm you.

Remember, stay solutions-focussed, not problem-focussed. Knowing what your obstacles are is important, but only as a means to help you come up with a plan to overcome them. If you’re paralyzed by these obstacles, reach out to a friend or coach to help you find possible solutions you may not be able to see by yourself.

You have to deeply want the outcome your goal promises to motivate you to achieve it. Knowing why you want to reach the specific goal you’ve begun to build will help you push through the inevitable rough patches when your energy dips. Ask yourself:

How will achieving this goal help me?
Does this goal align with my priorities and beliefs?

Consider printing out the answers to these questions and posting them somewhere you look at every day to remind yourself of why you want to achieve this goal. It’s the same concept as the “North Star'' idea I mentioned in the Goalsetting for 2021 post.

I’m sure it comes as no surprise that humans work best with a deadline. Our brains are hardwired for it. The brain is designed to only devote energy to tasks that are immediately important and conserve its energy otherwise. Not having a deadline allows you to procrastinate goals you may otherwise be committed to and excited about. You think you can always do them later - and surprise, surprise, they don’t get done.

When setting deadlines, plan for more time than you actually need. Emergencies, delays, and bad days just happen. It’s a fact of life. But if you give yourself a buffer period for every deadline you have, those emergencies and bad days won’t prevent you from getting your task done on time. Trust me, it relieves an enormous amount of pressure and is considered good practice in most project-based businesses. My rule of thumb is to schedule 1.5x as much time as I think the project will take to complete. For example, for a project I think will take 2 weeks to finish, I plan for 3 weeks, though I keep a ‘soft deadline’ of 2 weeks.

In case you’re still not convinced of the effectiveness of the SMART method, here are two examples of the same goal. One is made the SMART way, and the other is not. Which is more likely to be accomplished?

“I will make a demo reel.”

“To practice my acting skills, find an agent I’m excited about, and give me a tool to promote my career [Relevant], I will make a 3 minute demo reel by writing a one minute dramatic scene set in my living room during week one, finding a one minute dramatic scene set in a restaurant (where I work) during week two, and writing a one minute comedic scene set in the park by my house during week three [Specific, Measurable, and Time-Bound]. I will ask my friend Kris to film and my friends Amy, Carlos, and Keiko to act in them with me over two days. I will edit the demo myself on my library’s copy of Premiere Pro, finishing one scene per week. [Achievable]”

See?

So, to summarize:

S.M.A.R.T. is the acronym for “Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound”
The more specific a goal is, the easier it is to visualize accomplishing it and stay committed
Make goals measurable so you know how much progress you’re making
Keep it achievable so you don’t get overwhelmed, but far enough outside your comfort zone that you have to stretch yourself
Know why your goal is relevant to help you stay motivated to finish
Set a deadline so you can’t procrastinate the goal. Build in 1.5x the time you think you will need to allow for emergencies, delays, and bad days.
Frame your goal in a positive, constructive, and inspiring way

Tell me one of your S.M.A.R.T. goals in the comments!

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About Me

Larissa is a professional audiobook narrator, voice over artist, and actor. With her home recording studio in Vancouver, B.C., she is able to spend her time doing what she loves most - becoming a conduit for stories that resonate with us.