By Rochelle Melander

The difference between success and failure in a job search may be as simple as how you set goals. Consider a tale of two job seekers.

James was not happy in his job. Being both extremely skilled and ambitious, James set the goal of getting new employment within six months. He networked, sent out resumes, and even interviewed two or three times. When the six-month goal came and went, James became discouraged. How could he have failed at this?

When Carmen decided to look for a new job, she set the goal of devoting 30 minutes a day, five days a week to the search. Carmen made a list of daily goals, including adding new information to her resume and contacting a list of former coworkers for leads. At the end of each week, she reviewed her accomplishments and set up a new list of tasks for the week ahead. Within three months, Carmen had secured several interviews. She was well on her way to the new job she desired.

Whether your job search is crammed into a few hours after work or spread over a string of empty days, how you set goals is key. The SMART goal-setter will always get ahead! SMART is an acronym: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Reasonable, Time-bound. Keeping this acronym in front of you as you create and measure your goals will give you the kind of success Carmen experienced. Let's look at each step:

• Specific. Limit your goal's scope. "I will spend 30 minutes each day working on my job search" is a specific goal, narrow in scope. "I will try to get a new job" lacks specificity. Ask yourself, "Is this goal something I can accomplish?"
  
  
• Measurable. Like a long jump, set a goal that you can easily measure. Goals that have to do with feelings, such as "I will feel happier at work," are difficult to measure. You need to be able to see that you have accomplished your goal. A better goal for the happiness seeker might be, "At work this week, I will spend five minutes each day speaking with someone I enjoy." Ask yourself, "Will I be able to measure my progress?"
  
  
• Achievable. Put yourself in charge of achieving your goal. One of my clients said, "I will get published by a major company this year." I encouraged her to shift her goal to something she could control. Her new goal was, "I will submit my book proposal to five agents this year." Ask yourself, "Who is driving this goal?" If it is not you -- change the goal!
  
  
• Reasonable. Create a goal you can accomplish. If you set the goal to work for a major celebrity, that would not be reasonable. You might, however, achieve your dream by setting a goal like this, "This week I will spend three hours researching the possibility of working for a celebrity." Ask yourself, "Is it possible for me to succeed at this goal?"
  
  
• Time-Bound. Make sure your job-search goals are tied to deadlines, or you could be sitting on your parent's couch next year at this time! Ask yourself, "When will I do this and by when will I finish this?"