Achieving SMART Goals through SMARTer Pinpoints

We’ve all experienced goals. From setting personal goals at home to pursuing departmental and organizational goals at school or work, goal setting is a familiar and important concept. Bussinessdictionary.com defines a goal as “An observable and measurable end result having one or more objectives to be achieved within a more or less fixed time frame.” From a behavior analytic point of view, a goal can be described as the desired outcome of behavior, typically within a predetermined time frame (Fellner & Sulzer-Azaroff, 1984).  This means, if we are to achieve goals, we must identify the very specific behaviors that will get us there. 

Unfortunately, lots of people set goals, but never clearly define and then engage in the specific behavior or chain of behaviors required to achieve them. Whether it’s a New Year’s Resolution or an organization finalizing what they want to achieve, much focus is placed on determining the goal, with too little thought placed on the precise behavior and tasks required to achieve them. Moreover, there is very little thought put into reinforcement that will maintain the behavior which is regrettable given that motivation to participate and perform the required tasks is essential to the success of goal attainment in any setting (Greenberg and Ornstein, 1984). 

Critical Behavior

And I’m not simply talking about any behavior. Rather, high impact behavior. These are the critical behaviors that will accelerate attainment of goals and naturally recruit other behaviors in order to get the job done. There are a lot of things people can and need to do to achieve outcomes; however, if everything is important, nothing is important. Consequently, it’s incredibly important to determine precisely what result you want, and precisely what behaviors will lead to that result. A process call pinpointing. For example, a boxing coaching and fighter might set a goal of reducing the number of times they are struck with a left hook by 25% over a 90-day period. Now, there are many ways to avoid a left hook. But the pinpointed behavior might be head movement that involves “rolling” under the hook that leads to the pinpointed result of successfully avoiding the hook. 

By pinpointing a behavior, the coach can now further task analyze (i.e. breaking down a complex skill into the component skills) movements to make it easier for him or her to measure and provide detailed feedback on specific components to help shape the fighter’s performance. By learning to “roll” under the hook, the fighter is provided ample repetition during training and sparring in discriminating the appropriate opportunities to engage in rolling. During these opportunities, the fighter must also engage in associated behaviors like footwork, posture, and the accompanying offensive techniques that result from good head movement. In other words, this pinpoint naturally “recruits” other important behaviors that didn’t need to be taught. 

There is another critical aspect related to the goal example above. As mentioned, motivation is essential to success. Motivation gets people to behave. And when they behave, their behavior has the opportunity to be reinforced, especially when if it’s moving them towards a desired goal. If a fighter had been getting walloped with hooks during training or in actual fights, it’s easy to imagine that avoiding a hook would be its own source of motivation. So, the behavior of rolling under the hook likely comes into contingencies of “naturally” occurring reinforcement each time a hook is avoided. The result, the fighter will likely develop a very important and healthy habit in the context of combat sports. 

SMART to SMARTER

Given the importance of motivation, it’s odd that more focus isn’t placed on it when developing goals. In fact, from a behavioral perspective, the primary purpose for setting goals should be to create additional opportunities for reinforcement (Daniels & Daniels, 2006). This has never been more evident than when we analyze the acronym “SMART,” a common approach to developing goals. A SMART Goal, according to many authors, (e.g. Doran, 1981), is one that is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Results-focused, and Timebound. Now, while these are all important aspects of goal setting, no component in there is suggestive of motivation. What if the goal isn’t important to you or folks in an organization charged with achieving it? If we are to achieve goals, or if we want others to achieve goals, we must ensure ample motivation is paired with the ability to engage in the behavior or skills required to achieve them. 

As such, the SMART (Specific, Motivational, Achievable, Relevant, and Trackable) as defined by Geller (2003) seems to make for a better fit given it addresses motivation.  And rather than apply it only to goals, I’d suggest that focus be placed on developing SMART Pinpoints as well (Gavoni & Weatherly, 2019). Smart Pinpoints include:

• Specific. The result and behaviors required to achieve it are precise and observable.
• Motivational. The result needs to be meaningful if you or somebody else are to engage in the behavior required to achieve them.
• Achievable.  Pinpoints need to be achievable. If it can’t be done, or if doing it won’t achieve the desired results, they aren’t SMART at all!
• Relevant. There are many behaviors that can be selected from. But the behavior needs to be germane to day to day activities, and the results need connected to be connected to establish goals. 
• Trackable. Both pinpointed behaviors and results must be measurable. Period. If it can’t be measured, it’s not a pinpoint.

Thankfully, good pinpoints allow for solid measurement.  Pinpointing leading and lagging indicators as a measure of progress and source of reinforcement can be extremely powerful. In some cases, indicators can even be used as predictive analytics which has the potential to save a lot of time and money as it can let you know how things might turn out if things continue on the same trajectory. Check out the brief video by Brett DiNovi and Associates for an illustration of how they use predictive analytics to effectively and efficiently achieve desired outcomes.

It might sound too simple, but failure to establish SMART Pinpoints related to both the outcome and behavior is too often at the root of failure to achieve goals. Remember, all results require somebody doing something more, less, or differently.   Setting a goal in and of itself is insufficient for achieving it.  If you want to achieve personal goals or support the attainment of goals in your organization, you need to pinpoint behavior and results so that you have a way to measure and reinforce progress. So, don’t just settle for SMART Goals. Make sure you take the time to develop SMARTer Pinpoints. 

Reference

Daniels, A., & Daniels, J. (2006). Performance management: Changing behavior that drives organizational effectiveness. Atlanta, GA: Performance Management Publications.

Gavoni, P., & Weatherly, N., (2019). Deliberate coaching: A toolbox for accelerating teacher performance. West Palm Beach, FL: Learning Sciences International.

J Fellner, Denise & Sulzer-Azaroff, Beth. (1984). A Behavioral Analysis of Goal Setting. Journal of Organizational Behavior Management - J ORGAN BEHAV MANAGE. 6. 33-51. 10.1300/J075v06n01_03.

Roose, Kathryn & Williams, Larry. (2017). An Evaluation of the Effects of Very Difficult Goals. Journal of Organizational Behavior Management. 1-31. 10.1080/01608061.2017.1325820.

BIO

An expert in human performance, coaching, and organizational leadership, Dr. Paul "Paulie" Gavoni has worked in education and human services for 20 years where he served in a variety of positions including COO, Director of School Improvement, Leadership Director, Professor, Assistant Principal, School Turnaround Manager, Clinical Coordinator, Therapist, and Behavior Analyst. Beyond his direct work with students in poverty and those suffering from behavioral and mental health issues, Dr. Gavoni specializes in providing administrative teams, teachers, and staff with training, coaching, and consultation in analyzing and developing behavior and performance management systems to positively impact key performance indicators. As a behavior scientist, Dr. Gavoni is passionate about applying organizational behavior management (OBM) strategies to establish positive environments that engage and bring out the best in professionals, so they can bring out the best in the children and adults they serve. 

Dr. Gavoni is co-author of Quick Wins! Accelerating School Transformation through Science, Engagement, and Leadership  and the best seller Deliberate Coaching: A Toolbox for Accelerating Teacher Performance. In addition, he is published in academic journals on topics related to school improvement and sports, and has published three online courses dedicated to school leadership preparation, an area he remains deeply passionate about. Click here to listen to hear more about Dr. Gavoni’s work in schools.

Beyond his work in education and human services, Dr. Gavoni is also a highly sought out and respected coach in combat sports. In 1992, he began boxing in South Florida and went on to win a Florida Golden Gloves Heavyweight Title in 1998. Since then, Coach “Paulie Gloves,” as he is known in the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) community, has trained many champions and UFC vets using technologies rooted in the behavioral sciences. Coach Paulie has been a featured coach in the books Beast: Blood, Struggle, and Dreams a the Heart of Mixed Martial Arts, A Fighter’s Way, and the article Ring to Cage: How four former boxers help mold MMA’s finest. 

He is also an author who has written for a variety of online magazines such as Scifighting, Last Word on Sports, and Bloody Elbow where his Fight Science series continues to bring behavior science to MMA. Co-founder of MMA Science, his current project involves the development of the first International MMA Belt Ranking System, a ground breaking process bringing tradition, organization, and behavior science to mixed martial arts.