If I’m “about” anything, it’s to promote the idea of:  Happiness for Everyone.

Sounds idealistic, you might be saying, but I don’t care what you think. Because, well, this mission makes me happy.

One area in which I attend to this idealistic mission – and I admit I picked a tough venue – is:  The Workplace (cue the “Psycho” music!).  Yes, I’m crazy enough to believe that our work culture can change and that more people can be happy at work. “Work” may have four letters, but it does not have to be a four-letter word!

As I wrote in another blog post, Work Hearter, Not Smarter, any such shift in our work culture will require us to take a good look at our attitudes toward work. Is work a joyful expression of your life’s purpose? Or a prison you are trapped in because you need the money?  Where are you on the misery-glee continuum? Wherever you rate yourself at this moment, let’s start edging you toward the “glee” side, okay?

One place to begin with is your goal setting. I like to blend dreaming with goal setting – for a motivating mix of practical reality and honoring your heart’s desire.

On the practical side, you’ve got the standard S.M.A.R.T. goals. I have no beef with this goal-setting system, and I encourage you to make all of your important goals “S.M.A.R.T.”  But I also invite you to set goals that honor your heart, or: H.E.A.R.T. goals. Put the two together, and you’ve got: H.E.A.R.T. – S.M.A.R.T. goals. Voila!

As a reminder, S.M.A.R.T. goals are: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-based. You can learn about S.M.A.R.T. goals in so many places, I won’t go into them here. Just Google away.

Making your goals resonant with your heart, with whatever makes you tick as a person – gives them a life that you will want to honor.  So many goals go unfulfilled. Make them H.E.A.R.T. – S.M.A.R.T. and you will seriously crank up your success rate.

H.E.A.R.T. goals are ideal whether you are a business owner or an employee. Spelled out, they are:

• Holistic – As Aristotle said, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” Does your goal honor your whole self? Does your goal allow you to focus on a particular area without squishing the life out of the rest of your life?  If reaching a certain goal means sacrificing in another area, make sure you are going into it will full awareness and understanding your choices.
• Energizing – Is your goal something you are looking forward to pursuing? What is your enthusiasm meter telling you? You’ll know you’re on track if, even if you are tired or down, going for this goal brings you up and makes you feel more alive.
• Aligning – Your goal should click right in place with your core values and resonate with what makes you tick about life altogether. You may not be able to articulate it in words, but you can FEEL the passion of this work and how important it is to you. For you, this goal is not a “should” it is a “must!”
• Relationship Building  – Does your goal connect you with people who inspire you and with whom you feel fully supported? Even if no other person is involved in pursuing your goal, who are the people you can be fully open with about your pursuit – those people who will champion you, no matter what?
• Transformational – This goal is not just something you will DO, but something that will embed itself into your being, creating an internal shift, stretching you, moving you toward something, rippling out to others. This goal has a noble purpose that gives it depth, width, reach. Both within you and beyond you.

So, what are your goals? And are they H.E.A.R.T. – S.M.A.R.T.?  If so, your likelihood of achieving your desire is certain!