Why SMART Goals Fail and What You Should Do Instead

Why SMART Goals Fail and What You Should Do Instead

From The Unstuck Career by Ken Williams

April 24, 2026 · 8 min · Season 2 · Episode 252

About this episode

The episode discusses the limitations of SMART goals and offers alternative approaches to goal setting.

Send us Fan Mail If you've ever felt frustrated or stuck after trying—and failing—to achieve SMART goals, you're not alone. This week on Unstuck Career, Speaker A dives into why SMART goals might actually be holding you back and why it's not your fault if they haven’t worked for you. We’ll explore the origins of the SMART framework, why it was designed for businesses—not individuals—and how its limitations can make us internalize failure and doubt our abilities. But there’s hope: Ken introduc...

People in this episode

Host: Ken Williams

Guest: Speaker A

Topics covered

  • SMART goals
  • goal setting
  • personal development
  • business framework
  • failure
  • self-improvement

Keywords

  • SMART goals
  • goal failure
  • personal growth
  • business goals
  • self-doubt
  • goal setting strategies

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