So, do you set New Year's resolutions?

I've had the privilege of asking that question to many people. More often than not I hear people reply that resolutions don't last... they don't work.

How about you?

My experience after working with hundreds of executive coaching clients is that the problem isn't that new year's resolutions don't work. Rather, the issue is more related to us not setting goals that are workable.

Great project managers know that successful projects thrive on well considered and articulated objectives (also known as success criteria). Important lessons for creating SMART objectives (and New Year's resolutions) include:

• Make them SPECIFIC. Make sure it's clear what the objective means.

• Try to make them MEASURABLE. An objective or resolution without a number is just a slogan. How do you know if you achieved the goal? Making it measurable helps you measure your success.

• Aim to have them AGREED UPON. Do your key relationships agree with your goals? It's helpful to have the buy-in of those most important relationships.

• Make sure they're REALISTIC. Stretch goals are fine, but you need to have a reasonable belief that the goals are realistic and achievable for them to have the motivating effect.

• Consider TIME-FRAMING your goals. Most goals require time to achieve. Help make your goals more specific and achievable by also including a timeframe for when they will be achieved.

"Save more money" is a slogan. So is "Exercise more." By how much? What does "exercise" mean?

Consider this: "Run and lift weights for at least 30 minutes, 3 times per week, 50 weeks out of the year."

Do you see how making your new year's resolutions "SMART", they can better help you stay on track.