Goal Setting

Goals are wishes that are attainable, measureable and that you’ve committed to actually achieving.

You may wish you had that Maserati, and would be very happy if you won it, but if it isn’t something

you are actively taking steps to purchase, it’s not a goal.

WISH

A wish is a statement of desire

things that are intentionally vague and can mean different things depending on circumstances.

GOALS

A goal is a pre-defined future point in your life that you want to move towards.

quantify these wishes into something attainable

SM

ART

SpecificMeasurableAchievableRealisticTime

Speci

fic

The goal should be described as specifically as

possible. A goal of losing weight

is not specific. A goal of losing twenty

pounds from a current

weight of one-ninety is

specific.

Measu

rabl

e

To be effective, the goal must be measurable. Obviously, weight is

measurable, whereas

being more generous

and working harder at

your job are not measurable as stated.

Ach

ievable

There's an art to goal

setting that revolves

around the goal's difficulty.

A good way to decide that

a goal is achievable but

challenging is to visualize

yourself reaching the goal.

Can you see yourself

there? Are you energized

by seeing the vision? If

both of these are not

present, revisit your goal.

Realist

ic

Do you have the knowledge, skill set, and

competency to reach your

goal? If your goal involves weight loss, do you know

all you should know about

nutrition, calorie content,

and metabolism to achieve your goal?

If not, perhaps your first

goal should be to gather

this information.

Tim

ely

Set a timeframe for the goal:

for next week, in three months,

by twelth grade. Putting an end point on your

goal gives you a clear target to

work towards. If you don’t set a time, the

commitment is too vague. It

tends not to happen because

you feel you can start at any

time. Without a time limit, there’s no

urgency to start taking action

now. Time must be measurable,

attainable and realistic.

Four Steps to Writing a Goal

Ste

p O

ne (

1)

Write the goalWrite one personal

goal and write why this goal is important to you.

Write what the goal looks likes when it is finished.

Ste

p T

wo (

2)

Outline the Specific Steps to

Achieve the GoalOutline all the steps to

achieve the goal.Each step needs to be

broken down into small

manageable tasks that

you are able to accomplish.

Ste

p T

hre

e

(3)

Chart the Obstacles for Achieving the GoalYou will chart the blocks

on attaining your goal

and write how you will

deal with each issue.This part is excellent

because often we do

not think of the obstacles in achieving

our goals.

Ste

p F

our

(4)

Time Frame You should write an

approximate deadline

for achieving the goal.

TH

INK! Think of three short

term goals and three

long term goals that

you want to accomplish. Write your long-term

and short-term goals

in notebook.