I came across an excellent post at the “Stand Out Blog” that I wanted to share with you all, which is applicable for all of us in different aspects of our lives, but especially in trading.

Entitled “Smart Goal Setting for 2009,” author Tom provides us a list and also distinguishes between “SMART” goals and “dumb” goals – we should be aware of the subtle differences.

For example, which of these two goals would be considered a “smart” goal:

“I want to make more money next year trading than I did this year.”

or

“I want to take at least two low-risk, high-probability, objectively defined trades per day (or week)”

Clearly, you’ll have a better chance of making more money if your goals are well-defined, specific, and realistic.

Tom defines how to distinguish between a “dumb” (vague) and Smart goal.  He notes that the acronym “SMART” stands for the following aspects of goal setting:

Goals must be…

Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Relevant
Time-Bound

He then expands the post to describe examples related to each characteristic.

As we wind down 2008, check over the goals you set early in 2008 and see how you measured up.  What if you didn’t set good goals for 2008?  No problem – 2009 is a fresh year just ahead of us.

Start setting your trading (and life) goals today!

Corey Rosenbloom
Afraid to Trade.com