Goals are the backbone of anything you want in your sales career.

Since you’ve been thinking about account and skill goals for the upcoming quarter, you’ll need to utilize a strong protocol to guide you.

While some are fans of the OKR system – Objectives, Key Activities, and Results – the S.M.A.R.T. criterion is easy to set up and a bit more guiding.

As a refresher, S.M.A.R.T. stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Of course, time is the easiest because you’ll set goals each quarter, so your deadline is built in.

Goal setting is not designed to be a negative experience; no goal gods are watching and wanting you to miss your goals. So, while goals are designed to get you to stretch, push, and sweat a little in the process, they’re designed to be attainable.