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What is the SMART Goal Method and How Does it Work?

Human resources studies and management development training focus on finding the best ways for people to reach goals and be as efficient as possible at work. In human resources studies managers learn how to stay abreast of complicated and ever-changing policies, procedures, compliance requirements, and best practices. Mangers also learn how to stay on top of everything, which involves setting up goals. One expert, for example, has even named this process SMART Goal. Each letter in the word “smart” represents the five step process of setting and achieving your goals.

Setting up goals using the SMART goal method is also useful in management development training. This way, managers can see what they need to do to ensure that projects are completed correctly and in a timely manner. The first step in the SMART goal method is to be specific. According to the expert, being clear about what exactly you are aiming towards will help you actually get there. The more details provided, the easier it will be to accomplish.

The next step in the process is to be sure that you can measure your goal in terms of what has been achieved and what still needs to be done. Without a way to measure this, you may unnecessarily waste time trying to figure out what the next steps are to accomplish the goal completely. In management development training and human resources studies future managers are given these skills because it is crucial to keeping a company successful and well-organized.

Goals should also be made in partnership with the manager or owner and the worker involved. This is considered the third step in the SMART goal set up, called “acceptable.” Goals should not be imposed on anyone, they should be created together. When it is done in this manner, people will accept the goal and make a commitment to achieving it and therefore make it more likely that it will be accomplished.

Realistic is the next part of the SMART goal. Realistic implies that when you are creating a goal, you must keep in mind the balancing of a goal that would be nearly impossible to achieve versus a goal that would be too easy. The key is to balance this. Being timely with your goals is the last part in the SMART goal process, but it is definitely not the least important of the five. According to the expert, goals should be appropriate for near-term completion. The reason for this is because of the many uncontrollable external variables that affect goals set for too far in the future, such as weather, regulations, economics, and politics. Due to this, it’s important to try to keep all goals within this near-future time frame.

Setting goals is an ongoing process. The success that you can gain from properly set goals is extremely rewarding in many ways. Setting goals and being able to achieve them not only helps in the workplace, it also works for any personal goal you might have as well. By setting realistic goals and then achieving them, you are automatically making higher goals possible in the future. In this way, you can continually improve your performance in and beyond the workplace.

David Shoemaker is Vice President of Learning Solutions and Innovation at eCornell. For more information on human resources studies, management development training, or eCornell, please visit http://www.eCornell.com

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Getting an Education at Home While Working at Home

You may be working from home or wanting to work at home and feel like you need to get a better education. Home education programs are offered by a number of accredited schools. Deciding on what school and program will take research and time. Research will indicate if the particular program or school worked for the people that completed their training there. Decide what skills you would like to increase and what program will benefit your knowledge base for your working from home or home based-business venture. You will also have to figure if you have enough time to devote to an educational program with the time you will be attending classes online and the work that will be required from you.

There are many different schools and programs to look into before deciding what is best for you. If there is a particular school that you wanted to attend you can research if the school offers an online program and if you would qualify for such a program. Not every degree that you would get at a regular college or university is going to be offered online. This is why it is important to research different programs to see if there is one that will fit your needs and that is available online.

Keep in mind that you can devote as much or as little time as you have to an online college program. If you work full-time from home you may have to attend classes that are on a part-time basis. If you are working part-time you may be able to devote a lot more time to a full-time college program. Consider what time you will have available and how much time the program will take for you to complete.

It is also important to realize that online college programs are just as difficult as university classes taken on the campus. You will have to work hard to succeed at your classes, needing time to study and write papers if the classes deem that as part of their program. Make sure you can devote extra time for homework and other endeavors related to succeeding in the class.

Another important factor when deciding if an online education is for you is for you to consider how much you will be paying in tuition. When a class or program is offered online it will cost just as much as if you attended the school. Decide if you have enough money to devote to the program. You can take loans out to supplement the cost of tuition, but remember when you are done with school you will have to pay the loans back. Consider how much you will have to take out and if it is worth taking that amount of money out. In other words consider how much you will make working from home or having a home-based business and decide if getting an education will be worth it. Education will give you the edge in a competitive business geared world.

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5 Misconceptions of Online Learning

As colleges and universities expand, so do their programs. Online programs are often misconceived as great forms, or terrible forms of learning. Everyone has their own opinion, but there are basics to be covered before being judgmental toward online learning.

1. The online means of learning are less effective than in the classroom- there are certain aspects of in-class teaching can never be replaced by those of an online class. An online class cannot provide either the teacher or the student face-to-face contact or body language of any sort. Hearing a tone of voice or being able to look someone in the face can help lead to great teaching experiences. While online classes lack these things, there are things that can also not be replaced in the classroom. In an online course, and entire class is able to participate in an online discussion and not be constrained by time limits set by in-class schedules. Online courses and interfaces that are designed well can help students perform at equal levels as in-class courses.

2. Online courses are simple to teach- teaching an online course is not as simple as grading a virtual exam or paper. Most instructors wanting to teach online have to go through courses and training to teach specifically online. Teachers are required to learn new software, manage discussions taking place, and have to create an entire new curriculum for out-of-the-class instruction. They are responsible for creating relationships with students over a computer, through social networking, email and things like forums and discussion boards.

3. Online courses are easy to take- students are able to take online classes with the promise of the flexibility with scheduling and workload. Colleges and universities that provide online courses tend to align their curriculum to match that of the in-class courses. Students are expected to demonstrate the same amount of performance as in the classroom. Students are given the same semester-based schedule and will still have to complete assignments by their deadlines, work through their syllabuses and participate in selected activities. Many established campuses that offer online courses have students that attend class both in and out of the classroom. This makes it imperative to be able to rank classes at the same caliber by factoring in the performance, assessment and rigor.

4. An institution’s campus has little contribution to the online segment- while campus departments have a significant amount of oversight, the main party responsible for online course delivery would be the Division of Continuing Education (DCE). Department chairs and deans will determine how the online schedule is distributed and overall, how it works, and for choosing the faculty for the courses.

5. Remote instructors lack the capabilities of an in-class instructor- most classes online are taught by current faculty members, or by remote adjunct instructors, that are chosen, hired, and managed by the DCE. Every online educator will be required to have some teaching experience in the specialized field that they would like to teach, as well as their teaching degree. Extra training or certification is also usually required before teaching.

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