Learning Objective
- Write a long-term goal and then break it down into 4–5 short-term goals.
- Write about a goal you had set for yourself and met in the past. How did you go about achieving the goal? Was it a SMART goal?
About Setting Goals
What is a goal?
- A goal is something we set for ourselves.
- It’s something we aim for.
- A goal is important for achieving success.
- It can help us measure our progress, to see if what we are doing is moving us closer to or further from our ultimate ambition.
- A goal can be small: “I will wash my car Saturday morning.”
- It can also be big: “I will become a nurse in the next three years.”
- The big goals can be broken up into smaller ones:
– “I will increase my English by one level by the fall.”
– “I will pass my GED test by this summer.”
– “By next spring, I will be enrolled in a CNA program.”
Tips to help you set goals:
- Keep it simple – just a few sentences for each goal will be plenty.
- Write your goals down! “The discipline of writing something down is the first step toward making it happen.” (Lee Iacocca)
- Make a commitment to review your goals regularly.
- Allow your goals to reflect your values. Let your sense of “inner purpose” guide you.
- Visualize achieving your goal. See it, taste it, smell it. Feel your goal before it happens.
- Use motivating, positive language.
- Make your goals emotional. Use words that have an impact on you – energizing, compelling, Inspiring words.
- Share your goals with others and ask for their support.
- Reward yourself along the way. Even small achievements deserve recognition.
- Create goals for different increments of time (one week, one month, three months, one year, five years, ten years, etc.).
- Make sure your goals are yours – not just what others expect of you.
- Be sure to track your progress along the way.
Setting goals is an ongoing process
- You need to practice setting goals to learn how and to get better at it.
- Keep reviewing your goals and the steps you’re taking to reach them.
- Are your actions moving you closer towards your goal or further from it?
- If your actions aren’t moving you closer towards your goal you need to look again at the goal you’ve set and the steps you need to take to get there.
Tips written by Chrissy Scivicque. Reprinted with permission from Office Arrow.
Adapted from “Getting There: A Curriculum for People Moving into Employment,” The Center for Literacy Studies, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 1996
Related: Part 1: Why Are Goals Important? – TUTORING YOU
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