Frustrated, I finally found a heap of China Fuji apples going for 40 sens each, picked my 10 and queued up to get it priced at the weighing counter. It was a long line that day and everyone was trying to get in and get out quickly.

All of a sudden there was this guy with a goatie that dashed to the front of the line with his bag of carrots, grunted something to the attendant asking him to weigh his items but was shoo-ed off and asked to queue at the back of the line.  No drama there as the guy walked away and proceeded to the back of the line but suddenly he just cut right in front of me!

I was flabbergasted and filled with rage. I quickly mouthed, “Eh tak reti beratur ka? (Hey, don’t you know how to queue up?)” The guy turn his head around partially and grumbled something incomprehensible. I wanted to give him a lecture there and then but after I took a good look at him, I stopped my self as I finally realized that he was a Down’s Syndrome kid. My rage was withheld as I was caught in a moral dilemma. I kept to myself but still struggling to keep my cool as the line progressed and I got my stuff weighed.

Should I have taught that guy a lesson and chided him in public? But I would look like a bully lecturing a person less fortunate than me. Or did I do the right thing by just keeping quiet and letting him cut in front of me in the queue? Morally what I did was right but was it right for that Down Syndrome kid to be uncivilized? Does being less fortunate entitle you to be less of a civilized person?

The video snippet above is from the movie American History X and is cut from the scene where the lead character Derek Vinyard has just been attacked and sodomized in prison. While he is recuperating in the hospital, his mentor from high school Bob Sweeney drops in to visit about his younger brother, Danny . Derek dismisses Bob and tells him that what ever happens to Danny is none of his business plus he can’t do anything about it in prison.  The following conversation ensued.

Bob Sweeney: There was a moment, when I used to blame everything and everyone for all the pain and suffering and vile things that happened to me, that I saw happen to my people. Used to blame everybody. Blamed white people, blamed society, blamed God. I didn’t get no answers ’cause I was asking the wrong questions. You have to ask the right questions.

Derek Vinyard: Like what?

Bob Sweeney: Has anything you’ve done made your life better?

Ask yourselves that very same question. Reflect back on your past. Has anything you’ve done made your life better?

Or to make thing clearer, has anything negative you’ve done made your life better?

Has all those revolting teenage years made your life better today?

Has all your participating in street protests and being locked up in detention made your life easier now?

Has all that negative energy in the past contributed to improving your current state of being?

If you have answered YES then probably you were the lucky one. Do not end up like Derek Vinyard where he came to realization after it was too late.

Do something about it. Change your life for the better. If you don’t, no one will do it for you.

American History X is an eye and mind opening movie which highlights the struggle of a former neo-Nazi skinhead who tries to prevent his younger brother from going down the same wrong path that he did  You can watch it on YouTube here. Caution – This movie contains profanity, nudity and racial elements. For mature audiences only.

Take The Jackpot Out Of The Picture

Assume that I have the following five short term goals for the next 5 years.

1 – Buy some houses for investment

2 – Buy some good stocks

3 – Start-up my own company

4 – Give some to charity

5 – Buy something nice for my family

Now these are the typical type of goals which we would normally set – vague, intangible or in other words goal-less. Goals which do not qualify as goals but rather be called ideas instead. What’s wrong you say? Well take a look at the goals as I break them down one by one.

1 – Buy some houses for investment

The words used here were some houses. There is no mention of how many houses to buy, which area to target, how much to allocate for the houses, and when to buy them.

2 – Buy some good stocks

Again the word some was used. There was no indication of what stocks to buy and how much to allocate for the stocks.

3 – Start-up my own company

No mention on what kind of business and how much is allocated for this goal.

4 – Give some to charity

No mention of which charitable organization to give to and also no mention on how much to give out as charity.

5 – Buy something nice for my family

Something. Hah. Something but what? At least allocate a budget or write down what you intend to spend on like a holiday or a new car.

These goals lack details, measures and also time frame. Many of us set goals in this manner and it is no wonder that we fail to meet these goals over and over again. Those who are married will agree with me as they have been asked the same questions again and again by their wives. “When are you going to paint the living room? When are you going to fix that leaking faucet?” When you made that new year resolution to lose weight, did anyone ask you how much weight you plan to lose and you could answer them instantly? No? I guessed so. It is because that the goals set were not specific, measurable nor time bound and that is where the SMART goals methodology comes in.

SMART Goals: Definition

SMART is an acronym widely used in the world of program management to describe the 5 attributes of a goal which makes it possible.

S – Specific. The goal shall contain information that is well defined. e.g. “I aim to have RM100,000 in my HSBC savings account.” Not just any bank, not just any account but a HSBC  savings account. Notice that having some details in the goal makes it clearer. The more detailed your goal is the better.

M – Measurable. The goal shall be measurable in terms of how much e.g. “I aim to  have RM100,000 in my savings account.” Not just any amount but RM100,000. Now you know how much money you plan to save and you can plan on how much to save up each month.

A – Attainable. The goal shall be attainable with the current resources which you have e.g. “I aim to have RM1 million in my account in 10 years time” doesn’t sound right when you are drawing a salary of one thousand ringgit a month.

R – Realistic. The goal shall be realistic and not far fetched e.g. “I aim to travel to Mars when I reach 40 years old” is an ambitious statement but both you and I know you have to be an orthopedic surgeon, a medical officer at UKM and a part-time model to do that.

T – Time bound. The goal shall be bound by a time limit e.g. “By April 2015 I aim to have in my savings account RM100,000.” Not by April 2016 but by April 2015. Time constraints are crucial to help you plan your timeline.

Putting The Knowledge To Good Use

Now applying these 5 SMART attributes to the first 5 goals that I made earlier would give me the following results.

1 – Purchase 5 condominium in the Klang Valley below the budget of RM300,000 each by the year 2016. 4 of them will be used for rental income while one will be used for self-stay.

2 – Obtain 50 units of each of the following stocks in the KLSE by the year 2016 within the budget of RM500,000 –  HLB, BJTOTO, SP-SETIA, GENTING, PARKSON (of course these are just plainly speculative, please do not follow)

3 – Start-up my own company with a budget of RM150,000 in the cyber-cafe business by the end of 2012 in Kuchai Entrepreneur’s Park (if the world does not end by then :p)

4 – Give out RM5,000 to charity every year beginning 2010 which organizations include Rumah Sri Cahaya, Rumah Sri Pelita, Rumah Sri Kayu and Rumah Sri Line Clear (example only lah!)

5 – Give my family members gifts every year with each gift not exceeding the amount of RM100 beginning 2010.

So do the goals seem clearer now? Would you feel that these goal are achievable now? Let’s see them side by side.

See the difference? Now that you have an idea of what SMART goals are and how to set them, go ahead and draft your own. Make sure you write them down and review them from time to time. The details and constraints will change as your priorities change. The key here is to write them down as detailed as possible and draft out a plan for execute it. Believe me, you will come to a point when those goals will be rock solid once you know what you want.

Now go get yourself a pen and some paper!