SMART rules, which dictate that effective immediate goals should be: Specific. You know how you will accomplish the task. “Take the number 19 bus to the Aquatic Center.” Measurable. You will know whether or not you have succeeded. “Get in pool and swim one lap.” Action-oriented. Your goal is to do something, not to think or feel a particular way. “Swim the lap—even if I hate it and think my bathing cap looks stupid.” Realistic. You already know you can do it, even if you don’t feel particularly well. “I could swim twenty laps not long ago; I’m absolutely certain I can swim at least one.”
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