Rules to Setting Business Goals and Objectives: Why and How to be SMART

We all know that nothing runs without a plan, and a plan cannot run without having its objectives set.

That applies to any kind of plan, whether we're talking business or personal finances, university degrees or NGO programs, website promotion or weight loss.

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Setting objectives and milestones is of crucial importance for any planning activity and is the core of its success, or failure.
Knowing how to set objectives is not exactly rocket science in terms of complexity, but any strategist should know the basic rules of how to formulate and propose objectives. We will see in this article why objectives play such a major role within a company's planning and strategic activities, how they influence all business processes, and we will review some guidelines of setting objectives.

Rules to Setting Business Goals and Objectives: Why and How to be SMART

The Importance of Setting Objectives

One might wonder why we need to establish objectives in the first place, why not let the company or a specific activity just run smoothly into the future and see where it gets. That would be the case only if we really do not care whether the activity in discussion will be successful or not: but then, to use a popular saying, "if something deserves to be performed, then it deserves to be performed well". In other words, if we don't care for the results, we should not proceed with the action at all.

Setting objectives before taking any action is the only right thing to do, for several reasons:

- it gives a target to aim to, therefore all actions and efforts will be focused on attaining the objective instead of being inefficiently used;

- gives participants a sense of direction, a glimpse of where they're going to;

- motivates the leaders and their teams, since it is quite the custom of establishing some sort of reward once the team successfully completed a project;

- offers the support in evaluating the success of an action or project.

The 5 Rules of Setting Objectives: Be SMART!

I am sure most managers and leaders know what SMART stands for, well, at least when it comes of establishing objectives. However, I have seen some of them who cannot fully explain the five characteristics of a good-established objective - things are somehow blurry and confused in their minds. Since they can't explain in details what SMART objectives really are, it is highly doubtful that they will always be able to formulate such objectives.

It is still unclear from where the confusion comes: perhaps there are too many sources of information, each of them with a slightly different approach upon what a SMART objective really is; or perhaps most people only briefly "heard" about it and they never get to reach the substance behind the packaging.

Either way, let us try to uncover the meaning of the SMART acronym and see how we can formulate efficient objectives.
SMART illustrates the 5 characteristics of an efficient objective; it stands for Specific - Measurable - Attainable - Relevant - Timely.

1. Be SPECIFIC!

When it comes of business planning, "specific" illustrates a situation that is easily identified and understood. It is usually linked to some mathematical determinant that imprints a specific character to a given action: most common determinants are numbers, ratios and fractions, percentages, frequencies. In this case, being "specific" means being "precise".

Example: when you tell your team "I need this report in several copies", you did not provide the team with a specific instruction. It is unclear what the determinant "several" means: for some it can be three, for some can be a hundred. A much better instruction would sound like "I need this report in 5 copies" - your team will know exactly what you expect and will have less chances to fail in delivering the desired result.

2. Be MEASURABLE!

When we say that an objective, a goal, must be measurable, we mean there is a stringent need to have the possibility to measure, to track the action(s) associated with the given objective.

We must set up a distinct system or establish clear procedures of how the actions will be monitored, measured and recorded. If an objective and the actions pertaining to it cannot be quantified, it is most likely that the objective is wrongly formulated and we should reconsider it.

Example: "our business must grow" is an obscure, non-measurable objective. What exactly should we measure in order to find out if the objective was met? But if we change it to "our business must grow in sales volume with 20%", we've got one measurable objective: the measure being the percentage sales rise from present moment to the given moment in the future. We can calculate this very easy, based on the recorded sales figures.

3. Be ATTAINABLE!

Some use the term "achievable" instead of "attainable", which you will see it is merely a synonym and we should not get stuck in analyzing which one is correct. Both are.

It is understood that each leader will want his company / unit to give outstanding performances; this is the spirit of competition and such thinking is much needed. However, when setting objectives, one should deeply analyze first the factors determining the success or failure of these objectives. Think of your team, of your capacities, of motivation: are they sufficient in order for the objectives to be met? Do you have the means and capabilities to achieve them?

Think it through and be honest and realistic to yourself: are you really capable of attaining the goals you've set or are you most likely headed to disappointment? Always set objectives that have a fair chance to be met: of course, they don't need to be "easily" attained, you're entitled to set difficult ones as long as they're realistic and not futile.

Example: you own a newborn movers company and you set the objective of "becoming no. 1 movers within the state". The problem is you only have 3 trucks available, while all your competitors have 10 and up. Your goal is not attainable; try instead a more realistic one, such as "reaching the Top 5 fastest growing movers company in the state".

4. Be RELEVANT!

This notion is a little more difficult to be perceived in its full meaning; therefore we will start explaining it by using an example in the first place.

Imagine yourself going to the IT department and telling them they need to increase the profit to revenue ratio by 5%. They will probably look at you in astonishment and mumble something undistinguished about managers and the way they mess up with people's minds.

Can you tell what is wrong with the objective above? Of course! The IT department has no idea what you were talking about and there's nothing they can do about it - their job is to develop and maintain your computerized infrastructure, not to understand your economic speech. What you can do it setting an objective that the IT department can have an impact upon, and which will eventually lead to the increase you wanted in the first place. What about asking them to reduce expenditures for hardware and software by 10% monthly and be more cautious with the consumables within their department by not exceeding the allocated budget? They will surely understand what they need to do because the objective is relevant for their group.

Therefore, the quality of an objective to be "relevant" refers to setting appropriate objectives for a given individual or team: you need to think if they can truly do something about it or is it irrelevant for the job they perform.

5. Be TIMELY!

No much to discuss about this aspect, since it is probably the easiest to be understood and applied.

Any usable and performable objective must have a clear timeframe of when it should start and/or when it should end. Without having a timeframe specified, it is practically impossible to say if the objective is met or not.

For example, if you just say "we need to raise profit by 500000 units", you will never be able to tell if the objective was achieved or not, one can always say "well, we'll do it next year". Instead, if you say "we need to raise profit by 500000 units within 6 months from now", anyone can see in 6 months if the goal was attained or not. Without a clear, distinct timeframe, no objective is any good.

Rules to Setting Business Goals and Objectives: Why and How to be SMART

Otilia is a young certified professional with expertise in eMarketing and eBusiness, currently working as independent consultant and ePublisher. She developed and teach her own online course in "Principles of eMarketing" and is also a volunteer Economics teacher. You can contact her via her Marketing resources portal at TeaWithEdge.com

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3 Top Cartoon Drawing Tips For Beginners

Cartooning is not about drawing it is about telling stories. Yes, even when you are drawing a single illustration you are telling a story. Cartooning is about expressing your thoughts. And it is your thoughts expressed beautifully through your cartoon characters that make you different from other average cartoon makers.

But as in every other field of life here also you must learn to walk first before you try running. To express your thoughts and ideas through your cartoon characters, you need to master the skill of cartoon drawing first. Then of course you can use your cartoon drawing skills to tell story to your liking.

Visual Graphic Arts

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To be skilled in cartoon drawing you have to face a learning curve. You just can't decide to be a cartoonist then copy some popular cartoon figures and become an accomplished cartoonist who is rich and famous. If you are lucky and talented with keen sense of observation you may pickup one or two tricks by making copy of popular cartoon figures. But that is too inadequate to be of any use.

3 Top Cartoon Drawing Tips For Beginners

There are various ways that you can take to learn cartoon drawing --you can join cartooning school or take a home study course or follow a book of an expert cartoonist -- the bottom line is you have to follow the steps. Like you should first teach yourself drawing 3d shapes, then learn to stretch, squash those 3d shapes in your drawing. Next you need to practice things like drawing hands and head before moving on to motion and emotion and advanced things like that.

If it sounds like lot of work, you are right. But what you achieve at the end is worth working for. If you are smart however you can use the tips you are going to discover here to make the whole learning process fast and painless.

1. ==> Do not start with computers. I agree I run the risk of sounding backdated. But here I am not opposing usage of computer altogether, no sane person can do that. But for beginners there is no alternative to using paper and pencil.

There are various software that help you so much that you can go ahead even without learning how to draw a smooth line. This kind of over dependency on computers from the very beginning always backfires down the road.

2. ==> Nail the fact in your mind that construction of human, animal, cars and most of the things that that we see around us are complex 3d structures though we draw them on paper which is 2D. So when drawing you must mentally analyze your model in terms of 3d shapes like spheres and boxes and not in terms of 2d shapes like circles and rectangles.

Also when you draw something from paper (i.e. 2D), look for and find out the 3d shapes that make up the character.

3. ==> Most of the cartoon drawing or figure drawing tutorials always start with some basic 3d shapes and after a number of steps end up in a complete and beautiful figure. This technique is very effective in learning how we can draw complex figures starting with simple shapes. But what I am going to tell you will make your pace of learning even faster. It is in fact very simple way of using the same tutorial. Just a lot more effective.

What you need to do is start where the tutorial ends and go backward from there. See the completed figure and try to recognize the ingredient basic shapes. And compare your analysis with the exact shapes that are used in the tutorial.

This will give you a very through exercise in recognizing the basic shapes. And after some time you will be analyzing the real life around you like an expert. Just take your time and practice this technique, and see how fast it will improve your skill in cartoon drawing.

Cartoon drawing is pure fun both for professionals who earn their living through cartooning and hobbyists who draw cartoon only for personal pleasure. I do not know what you goal is but hope the tips here will be helpful for you. Never stop learning: there are a whole lot to learn and even more fun to have in the process. Happy journey!

3 Top Cartoon Drawing Tips For Beginners

Do you know what the beginners find most difficult in cartoon drawing? It is drawing the head and face. Check this simple

tutorial on head drawing and never be nervous again.

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His Most Famous Painting (On White II) - Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky

"On White II" is a phenomenal creation by Russian painter Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky. Created in the year 1923, this painting is a classic example of 'Abstract Geometrical Art,' based on different geometric forms and shapes, especially portrayed in a non-illusionistic manner. Kandinsky's "On White II" is a work of detailed analysis and critical precision. Each geometric feature, right from a triangle to a circle to even the points, the lines, and even the surface used for painting, all involve a meticulous competence. In Wassily's words, these are called as 'the basic plan.' So powerful 'Abstract Geometrical Art' was that it was later included in the curriculum of an architecture & art school, 'The Bauhaus.'

The span of the details of Kandinsky's, "On White II" spans to include each unit of it. Each point of this artwork is significant in its own way. This 105cm x 98cm creation depicts a magnificent usage of complex shapes, climaxed with an interesting harmony of colors. A milestone of the twentieth century 'Modern Art,' "On White II" definitely manages to catch a viewer's attention for good. It will compel you for its critical analysis, leaving you amazed. The original and the excellent color scheme of the painting reflect Wassily's love for freedom and imagination, while portraying a broad spectrum of emotions.

Visual Graphic Arts

The prolific white was used to endless dimensions, thereby representing the possibilities and the opportunities of life, while expressing peace and silence as well. On the other hand, Black portrays the non-existent, the nothingness, and the terminal death. "On White II" employs an intelligent and an expressive combination of these two key colors, black and white. The next attention catching hues are blue and yellow. The overall effect of the painting can be connected to Wassily Wassilyevich's love for music. The riot of colors is quite similar to the riot of notes a good piece of music creates. In Kandinsky's words, "music is the ultimate teacher." He always related the art of painting with composing music and therefore, often referred to his paintings as "Composition." In his words, "Color is the keyboard, the eyes are the hammer, the soul is the piano with the strings."

His Most Famous Painting (On White II) - Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky

To keep his art alive, a lot of oil painting reproduction of "On White II" were made and were transacted by several art lovers globally. Today, even so many years later of Kandinsky's death (1944), he is still remembered him as the creator of first 'Modern Art' painting, "On White II." Very few artists can express death deeply enough through colors. In his words, "Black is like the silence of the body after death, the close of life." - Wassily Kandinsky, 1911.

His Most Famous Painting (On White II) - Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky

Annette Labedzki received her BFA at the Emily Carr College of Art and Design in Vancouver, B.C. Canada. She has more than 25 years experience. She is the founder and developer of an online art gallery featuring original art from all over the world. It is a great site for art collectors to buy original art. Is is also a venue for artists to display and sell their art . Artists can join for free and their image upload is unlimited. Please visit the website at http://www.Labedzki-Art.com

Annette has bonus offers on her work only. Buy 3 small paintings of any size (maximum size 11x17 inches) and receive 3 small paintings of your choice for free (maximum size 11x17 inches) SHIPPING IS FREE Buy one large painting (minimum size 18x24 inches) receive 5 small paintings of your choice (maximum size 11x17 inches) FOR FREE. SHIPPING IS FREE. Please feel free to subscribe to her newsletter at http://www.Labedzki-Art.com

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Number 13: The Legends, Myths, and Facts

Why does the number 13 evoke feelings of
uncertainty and uneasiness? Is it really an
unlucky number? What started this stigma
about 13?

Triskaidekaphobia means the fear of number 13.
Sometimes, this fear triggers panic attacks, affects
family and business relationships. Is this rooted
in superstition? Number 13 reflects man's fear
of the unknown.

Tradition traces this fear of 13 at the table to the
Last Supper- Jesus dined with his twelve apostles.
The inference was someone was going to die
within a short time. Judas betrayed Jesus,
overcome by his guilt, he hang himself.

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Mythology has its own story. The Norse gods were
having a banquet for 12 at the Valhalla when Loki,
one of the evil gods gatecrashed the party. Balder
was the god of light, joy and reconciliation. He had
a blind brother whom Loki tricked into throwing a
sprig of mistletoe on Balder's chest which killed
him ( Balder). Mistletoe is the only earthly thing
that was fatal to Balder.

Number 13: The Legends, Myths, and Facts

Into the Middle Ages, the stigma against Friday
the 13th grew stronger. On Friday, October 13, 1307,
King Phillip !V of France ordered the arrest of the
Grand Master of the Knights Templar and his senior
knights and other members.They were tortured to
compel them to admit to "wrongdoings."

And they were executed. Sympathizers of the Templars
condemned Friday the 13th as an evil day.

Later in the 18th century, this belief about Friday the 13th
was again reinforced. The British ship HMS Friday was
launched on a Friday , the 13th , the captain was a man
named Jim Friday. The ship was never seen nor heard
from again.

Do these events justify the stigma attached to
number 13? It is documented that this fear of Friday the
13th costs millions of dollars a year in business loss
due absenteeism and cancelled appointments .

Some "unlucky" events associated with 13 is
the famous Apollo 13 mission in 1970. It was
launched on 1313 hours, from pad 39 ( 13 x 3),
3 of the sleeping arrangements for the astronauts
were timed to start at 13 minutes past the hour
and so was one of the possible splashdown.

On April 13th, the first of the several setbacks to
Apollo 13 occurred and this added drama to the mission.

In many hotels and skyscrapers, there is no 13th
floor.Most airplanes have no seat No. 13. In Italy,
it is usual to leave out 13 in numbering the
lottery tickets.

Thirteen for dinner? Not in France. A party of
thirteen can hire a professional quatorzieme, a
fourteenth person, from an agency. In some big
hospitals, there is no Operating Room 13, to
spare the patient added anxiety being wheeled
into Room 13.

13 is the ideal number of people in a coven.
It is believed that to left-handed people, 13
is their lucky number.

But why is number 13 given such a negative
implication? This dates back to many centuries,
and still holds today in the 21st century.

Perhaps the anticipation of the negativity of
number 13 makes it a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Why could it not be any number?

Ref: Number Power by Keith Ellis

Number 13: The Legends, Myths, and Facts

Bonnie Moss writes to inspire and to motivate her readers to explore the depths of their heart and soul. She draws from personal experience and her interest in the New Age which offers a variety of tools to walk the path.

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Repossessed Boats For Sale - Where to Get the Best Deals on Repossessed Boats

if you want to find repossessed boats for sale, there are definitely many available. These boats will really help you save a pile on your next boat purchase, as opposed to either buying them used or new from a dealer. With this method, virtually anybody can afford a top quality fishing boat for a fraction of the typical price.

Most people, unfortunately, don't even consider repossessed boats, as they aren't widely advertised, but the reality is that you can find some hidden gems among these selections. Remember, repossessed boats are ones that the bank has to get rid of immediately, because believe me, they don't want to hang onto these items for very long.

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The person they have gotten h boat from has just defaulted on paying them, and therefore they want to get that lost money as quickly as possible-hence the bargains you can find.

Repossessed Boats For Sale - Where to Get the Best Deals on Repossessed Boats

However, one word of caution-while you can find some low priced bargains among repossessed boats for sale, be sure o look carefully for any damage on the boat, and check it out thoroughly beforehand.

Typically, the bank is in such a hurry to get rid of it that they might be a bit careless in their assessment of the condition, and therefore don't just take their word for it.

Be sure to look for things such as oil leakage, scratches on the body, engine shape and wear and tear, etc. All of these things can cost a small fortune to fix, which in reality can negate the money you saved in the first place.

In addition, today you no longer have to haul it over to your local bank, because you can find a huge selection online. In fact, I'd recommend you start here, because you can find national listings, which will obviously be much larger than what your local bank can offer.

Depending the site you go to, you may either find yourself bidding for the boats, or simply buying them outright, as you would with a dealer or private party. No one way is best-with auctions, you can generally save money if you know how, but you can also spend more than you need to by overbidding, so you need to determine beforehand which method you'd prefer buying it by, and then go with that.

Hopefully this info on repossessed boats for sale will encourage you to open your eyes and see the incredible opportunity that this untapped marketplace offers you.

Repossessed Boats For Sale - Where to Get the Best Deals on Repossessed Boats

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What Is An MAI Appraisal?

MAI appraisals are among the most sought after appraisals in the commercial real estate world. MAI stands for Member of the Appraisal Institute, a trade organization which monitors appraisers and holds them to a higher standard than appraisers who are merely licensed and do not belong to such an organization. There are other appraisal trade organizations active in the world of real estate. However, MAI is the best known, and thus the most popular.

Technically, there is no such thing as an "MAI appraisal." There are only appraisals performed by an appraiser who has completed the MAI Appraisal Institutes class offerings, and holds this designation. However, it's often much easier to refer to the appraisal itself as being certified than to hold to technicalities.

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An appraiser who has earned the MAI designation is qualified to and experienced in the performance of both residential and commercial properties. Many other appraisers are only qualified for residential property. At one point, lenders were likely to require that an appraisal be done by an MAI certified appraiser, or a member of another trade organization. However, this has been unlawful since 1989, as there is not federal regulation of these organizations. Still, certified appraisals can increase the chances of a favorable lending situation, since the lender will feel more comfortable. An MAI certified appraisal offers lenders a reliability that allows them to be confident in their investment.

What Is An MAI Appraisal?

A commercial appraisal by an MAI certified appraiser can include many things. Generally, it will provide an overview of the community, neighborhood, and general area in which the property is situated, as well as a detailed description of the site and all buildings it contains. Zoning analysis, an analysis of the highest and best use for the property, and an in depth discussion of the property's value from several different approaches will also be included. The appraiser may also make a recommendation of which valuation is most appropriate in his or her opinion.

Appraisers tend to be conservative in their estimates. However, this does not mean that one will receive a low appraisal. An MAI certified appraisal firm assumes liability if the appraisal is too high, and the property cannot be sold for the price they recommend. The firm also assumes liability if the price is too low and the property is sold for too little money. Because of this, appraisers have a vested interest in making sure that their estimates are in the middle range. Which sales an appraiser places the most emphasis on will depend in the type of market. In a rising market, emphasis will be placed on higher recent sales, and in a falling market, that emphasis will go to lower recent sales. A good appraiser is interested in giving clients the most accurate estimate possible.

What Is An MAI Appraisal?

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