Starting the New Year with Clear, SMART Goals
Kick off 2026 by adopting forward-thinking strategies to implement SMART goals and ensure your momentum lasts all year. Explore key insights from AmeriLife leaders and the Distribution Women’s Leadership Council (DWLC members, Ana Hernandez, Managing Director & Grupo Latino Americano de Seguros, and Kelly Atkinson, SVP Distribution Operations & Chief of Staff for AmeriLife Wealth Group.
Success in this industry doesn’t happen by chance; it requires precise planning, powered by SMART goals —making sure objectives are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
The SMART framework: Insights from leadership
Practical goals use the SMART structure as a foundation for both creation and sustained execution. AmeriLife leaders and DWLC members, Ana Hernandez, Managing Director at Grupo Latino Americano de Seguros; and Kelly Atkinson, SVP Distribution Operations & Chief of Staff for AmeriLife Wealth Group, offer practical ways to integrate each element:
- Specific: Goals must be unambiguous. Kelly anchors her objectives in the larger mission, ensuring her team understands the “bigger picture” to inform their “why.”
- Measurable: Define clear metrics for success. Ana tracks success using team effectiveness surveys and peer feedback, prioritizing team collaboration and cohesion as a key non-financial metric.
- Achievable: Objectives should be realistic and attainable. Kelly advises breaking longer-term goals into “smaller goals linked to key milestones” to maintain accountability and consistent progress.
- Relevant: Goals must align with your overall strategy and mission. Ana implemented a shift from a product-focused to a client-centered strategy, cultivating a client-loyalty mindset.
- Time-bound: Goals need a deadline or an established tracking rhythm. Ana maintains momentum by creating “self-calendar invitations for all important projects and assigning each an important level to target,” ensuring projects are prioritized and tracked from the start.
Keeping the momentum: New strategies for 2026
Effective goal execution is a blend of accountability and strategic flexibility. Focus on continuous progress over rigid adherence to distant outcomes.
“Successful goal implementation begins with co-creation, transforming potential pushback into unified commitment,” says Ana. “Goals succeed when the team owns them.”
Our leadership teams adhere to protocols for consistent achievement:
- Consistent tracking: Kelly dedicates time every quarter to formally reflect on progress, identify barriers, and reset for the quarter ahead. This structured check-in turns reflection into a robust, documented process.
- Overcoming obstacles: Challenges demand a leadership mindset and solution-oriented thinking. Shared discussion with peers helps you work through challenges, ensuring obstacles become temporary detours, not dead ends.
- Measuring success: True success goes beyond the balance sheet. Kelly points out that “retention and recruiting metrics are crucial non-financial drivers that ultimately help to fuel our long-term organic growth.” While Ana stresses that we should “use team effectiveness surveys to measure success.”
Your 2026 launchpad
Stop letting your aspirations languish as vague hopes. Use the SMART framework. Embrace flexibility. Create those self-calendar invitations. Your potential in 2026 is limitless, but it requires clarity and commitment. The time to define your success isn’t later—it’s right now. Set your sights, lock in your SMART goals, and let’s make this your best year yet!
[Sidebar]
Elevate your career: Join the Distribution Women’s Leadership Council
The DWLC is dedicated to recruiting, retaining, empowering, and advancing professionals in the insurance and financial services industry. Built by women, this vibrant community provides a forum of best practices, mentorship, and sponsorship for all who champion success.
Gain access to a robust network and participate in exclusive “Sips & Strategies” sessions, designed to cultivate the next generation of leaders. DWLC embodies core values such as integrity and excellence, driving professional growth and market opportunities. Discover how the DWLC can help you achieve your career objectives and contribute to AmeriLife’s distribution success.
