A common framework for goal setting is the SMART goal. Each letter in the acronym represents a component of a good goal.

Specific: A goal should help you focus on something specific. Instead of setting a goal for “exercise more” you can break it down into components. This is an opportunity to choose to use an app as well as remove a technology. The choice is yours! Look at your total wellbeing and pick something specific that would make you happy. Perhaps a goal to establish boundaries for your privacy. A specific privacy goal now can become a mastered behavior with practice and protect you as tech continues to change!

Measurable: Once you have a specific goal you can establish a way to measure it. The measure should be easy to use; otherwise, you won’t use it. Following the earlier goal to establish privacy boundaries, you can start with something easy like settings on your smartphone.

Achievable: New Year’s Resolutions are notoriously difficult to keep. One of the top reasons is that they are so distant that we give up. Make your goals achievable so that they stretch you but not break you. If you are just starting to take control of your privacy, don’t jump into the deep end with confusing compliance frameworks like HIPAA or detailed vulnerabilities. Start with the basics; understand what is important to you and learn as you progress.

Relevant: Your technology goals should be relevant to everything else in your wellbeing. Use tech and share data that promote your sense of security and wellbeing. Where that is not the case, look for ways to reduce / eliminate a technology. You are a total person and your goals should support you… Mind, Body, and Spirit.

Timely: Put a time frame around your goals to which you can commit daily. A goal that is months or years into the future is more like a wish. Set your tech goals for something you will do daily or at least weekly such as a weekly review of your smartphone privacy settings.