Goal-Setting for Freelance Writers - Smart Goals
Most freelance writers would not want to meet me at a party.
Here are just a few of the questions I'd hit you with: Do you write books or just articles? Under contract or on spec? What subjects do you write about? Why? Who's your audience? What topics are they most interested in? Do you do research to find stories or do you let the ideas come to you? Do you want to make a living from writing or just supplement your income? How much do you want to earn? Do you write for deadlines or as you have time? Are you making progress? How do you know? Is what you want to accomplish even possible? Why am I grilling you with all these questions? Let me explain with an example.
Let's say your goal is to get published.
Okay, then read your town's local paper, find an article that interests you each week, and write a letter to the editor about it.
Local papers publish the majority of the letters they receive, so worst case you'll be published in a few weeks.
Goal achieved, right? Technically, yes.
But that's not really what you meant by getting published, is it? Before you can ever hope to accomplish your writing goals, you must know in detail what those goals are in the first place.
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Goals for Freelance Writers The S.
M.
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R.
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goal-setting technique is popular because of its simplicity and power.
Clarify your goals according to the following criteria: Specific Measurable Achievable Results-oriented Time-bound Let's give it a try with the goal of "getting published.
" Specific: What length--article, book, other? What topic? What style--news, human interest, investigative report? What publications? What medium--print or web? Will you query first or write it on spec? Measurable: How will you track your progress? By number of submissions? Number of queries? Achievable: How big is this challenge for you? Have you ever done anything like it before? Has anyone else? Yes, there's always someone who's first, and you may be that person, but make sure you know that's the kind of goal you're setting before you get started.
Results-oriented: What results do you want? To be published once or land a contract? Do you want to become famous? To make money? To raise awareness about a cause you believe in? Time-bound: By what date do you want to be published? Vague goal: Get published.
SMART Goal: Query 20 alternative/holistic health magazines about writing a 4000-word feature article on the link between optimism and longevity.
Secure a contract within 2 months for the article to be published within 6 months from today.
It's important to note that with any goal, especially in a field like writing, the details will change as you progress.
Goal setting is not about stubbornness.
It's about clarity.
The more clarity you have from the very start, the more you can invite spontaneity and creativity into the process.
New ideas can be measured against the original plan and explored as a conscious choice.
And isn't choice your greatest power as a writer? Freelance writers who learn to use the SMART goal-setting strategy will increase the power of their writing and sell more articles than their competition.
Copyright 2006 Curtis G.
Schmitt
Here are just a few of the questions I'd hit you with: Do you write books or just articles? Under contract or on spec? What subjects do you write about? Why? Who's your audience? What topics are they most interested in? Do you do research to find stories or do you let the ideas come to you? Do you want to make a living from writing or just supplement your income? How much do you want to earn? Do you write for deadlines or as you have time? Are you making progress? How do you know? Is what you want to accomplish even possible? Why am I grilling you with all these questions? Let me explain with an example.
Let's say your goal is to get published.
Okay, then read your town's local paper, find an article that interests you each week, and write a letter to the editor about it.
Local papers publish the majority of the letters they receive, so worst case you'll be published in a few weeks.
Goal achieved, right? Technically, yes.
But that's not really what you meant by getting published, is it? Before you can ever hope to accomplish your writing goals, you must know in detail what those goals are in the first place.
S.
M.
A.
R.
T.
Goals for Freelance Writers The S.
M.
A.
R.
T.
goal-setting technique is popular because of its simplicity and power.
Clarify your goals according to the following criteria: Specific Measurable Achievable Results-oriented Time-bound Let's give it a try with the goal of "getting published.
" Specific: What length--article, book, other? What topic? What style--news, human interest, investigative report? What publications? What medium--print or web? Will you query first or write it on spec? Measurable: How will you track your progress? By number of submissions? Number of queries? Achievable: How big is this challenge for you? Have you ever done anything like it before? Has anyone else? Yes, there's always someone who's first, and you may be that person, but make sure you know that's the kind of goal you're setting before you get started.
Results-oriented: What results do you want? To be published once or land a contract? Do you want to become famous? To make money? To raise awareness about a cause you believe in? Time-bound: By what date do you want to be published? Vague goal: Get published.
SMART Goal: Query 20 alternative/holistic health magazines about writing a 4000-word feature article on the link between optimism and longevity.
Secure a contract within 2 months for the article to be published within 6 months from today.
It's important to note that with any goal, especially in a field like writing, the details will change as you progress.
Goal setting is not about stubbornness.
It's about clarity.
The more clarity you have from the very start, the more you can invite spontaneity and creativity into the process.
New ideas can be measured against the original plan and explored as a conscious choice.
And isn't choice your greatest power as a writer? Freelance writers who learn to use the SMART goal-setting strategy will increase the power of their writing and sell more articles than their competition.
Copyright 2006 Curtis G.
Schmitt
