SMART Talker’s Checklist for Communication Goals

A SMART communication goal is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Instead of aiming to “communicate better,” choose a behavior you can observe and control. For example: “I will summarize my main point in two sentences during each weekly team meeting for the next month.”

SMART goals can address speaking, listening, presentation delivery, written clarity, confidence, conflict management, or conversational habits. The key is to measure your own behavior rather than another person’s reaction. Research on goal-setting theory also highlights the value of specific, appropriately challenging goals.

• Specific: Name the exact communication behavior you want to change.
• Measurable: Choose a count, duration, completion marker, or self-rating.
• Achievable: Set an action you can realistically repeat in the selected situation.
• Relevant: Connect the behavior to a communication challenge that matters to you.
• Time-bound: Decide when the practice cycle ends and when you will review it.

The measure should focus primarily on your own behavior , not whether another person responds exactly as hoped.

1. Choose one situation. Focus on contributing during meetings, listening without interrupting, presenting concisely, or navigating disagreements calmly.
2. Name an observable behavior. Replace words such as “better” or “more confident” with an action that another person could recognize.
3. Select a simple measure. Use frequency, duration, completion, a self-rating, or structured feedback from someone you trust.
4. Set a practice period. A two- to four-week cycle gives you enough time to identify patterns without making the plan feel endless.
5. Review every SMART element. Revise any part that remains vague, impractical, or disconnected from your needs.

The CDC’s guide to writing SMART objectives offers additional guidance on defining clear, measurable objectives.

• Trying to change several communication behaviors simultaneously.
• Judging success entirely through another person’s reaction.
• Choosing an easy measure that is unrelated to the real challenge.
• Treating one uncomfortable conversation as proof that the plan failed.
• Keeping the same target after your records show that it is too easy or too demanding.

If the goal feels overwhelming, narrow the situation or reduce the frequency. If progress cannot be verified, add a count, deadline, self-rating, or completion marker.

Keep completed checklists as a record of what you tried and what changed. After one cycle, you can refine the same behavior or move to a new focus, such as paraphrasing a speaker’s main point, contributing one prepared idea to each meeting, or using neutral language during disagreements.

Practice, review, refine, and repeat.

The checklist is an instant-download digital PDF intended for planning and self-review rather than a shipped physical item.

Record whether the action occurred and add one concise observation. At the end of the week, look for patterns and adjust the target if it was too demanding or too easy.

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