Yes, I Want to Make 2016 My Best Year Ever in Freelancing!

Why it Works

Successful freelancers know how to set and achieve goals. A SMART goal helps you focus your business. Mini-goals let you make steady progress toward your larger goal.

Yes, I want to make 2016 my best year ever in freelancing!

Name:

Date:

2016 SMARTGoal

In 2016, I want to:

(What)

(How)

(By when)

SMART Goal Example

Goal: “Make $20,000 more in 2016 than in 2015 by getting 3-4 new clients and 20% more business from current clients.”

What:Make $20,000 more in 2016 than in 2015

How: Get3-4 new clients and 20% more business from current clients

By when: December 31, 2016

SMART Goal Checklist

Is my goal specific?
Can I measure my goal?
Can I achieve (or attain) my goal?
Is my goal relevant (important to my freelance business)?
Is my goal time bound (is there a deadline for achieving my goal)?

If you can check all of these items, you’ve set a SMART goal. If you can’t, revise your goal until you can.

2016 Mini-Goals

Break your SMART goal down into easily achievable mini-goals to work on each quarter, month, or 10-day period:

•Quarterly mini-goals work best if you’re doing well and just want to do a little better, expand your focus, etc.

•Monthly mini-goals are a good choice if you want or need to build your business quickly.

•10-day mini-goals are the fastest way to build your business.

Include the actions you’ll take to achieve each mini-goall.

To achieve my SMART goal, I will:

Mini-goal #1:

Actions to achieve thismini-goal:

Action #1:

Action #2

Action #3:

Deadline to achieve this mini-goal:

Mini-goal #2:

Actions to achieve thismini-goal:

Action #1:

Action #2

Action #3:

Deadline to achieve this mini-goal:

Repeat for each mini-goal.

Mini-Goal Example

Goal:

“Make $20,000 more in 2016 than in 2015 by getting 3-4 new clients and 20% more business from current clients.”

Quarterly mini-goal:

Research 120 new prospects, with a focus on (type of clients) in the first quarter of 2016

Actions to achieve thismini-goal:

Research 40 prospects each month

Prioritize prospects into 3 lists: hot prospects, routine prospects, and lukewarm prospects

Review and assess progress toward mini-goal:

Last 2 weeks in March

Deadline to achieve this mini-goal:

March 31, 2016

Goal Review

Review how you’re doing quarterly (every 30 days if you’re setting 10-day mini-goals). It’s okay if you need to adjust your SMART goal and mini-goals. The key is to keep making progress. Learn from what worked well and from what you struggled with. Figure out how to do better in the next quarter. Use the worksheet sections “2016 SMART Goal” and “Mini-Goals” to make revisions.