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Set a Goal... Make a Plan... and Go For It!
 Have
you ever had dreams about what you would like to be when you're an
adult, how you will perform in your next competition, how you will
do on your test, or how driving lessons will go? You may not have
those particular dreams, but you likely dream about something in
your life. Well, just dreaming about it won't make it happen. What
you can do is set some goals, and work out how you're going to make
it happen.
Goal setting is essential for building a successful life and it is a
life-long skill. It helps you to focus your unique gifts and
talents, and it helps to build and strengthen your self-worth. Goal
setting equips you to lead a life full of meaning, purpose and
direction - regardless of the personal or professional paths you
choose!
In order for something to be a goal:
 It has to be important to you, personally.
It has to be within your means and abilities.
It has to be something you have a reasonable chance of
achieving.
It must be clearly defined and have a specific plan of
action.
There are many areas to consider
when setting goals, such as:
Career - school grades; skill development; future plan
(ambition).
Personal - character development; personal growth
(self-image,
sense of responsibility, ability, self-esteem);
appearance.
Health - exercise; diet; over-all well-being; balance.
Community - commitment to serving others (volunteer work).
Financial - understanding the value of money; earning;
saving.
Friends - expanding your circle of friends; choosing
friends wisely.
Household - chores; contribution to building home life.
Recreation - hobbies; relaxation; fun (movies, parties,
etc.)
When aiming for a goal it's
important to focus on performance, not perfection! It's when
you're reaching for goals that you begin to see the
possibilities that exist for your life. You learn about your
strengths and non-strengths, and about what you can
accomplish in life.
Here are some things to consider
before you start setting goals...
Think about yourself:
What sort of person are you?
What do you look like?
What impression do you give others?
How do you feel about yourself?
Make a list of all the positive things you can think of,
such as:
I'm
a good student
I'm a happy person
I'm kind
to others
I
give 100% in sports
Now think about the things you can do,
such as:
 I can run well
I can cook
I
can tutor others
I can
sing or play an instrument
Finally, think about your appearance.
I'm in good shape
I eat healthy
I take care of my teeth, hair, nails, etc.
I dress neat and appropriate
So, now you
have a list of all the personal "assets" (or positive stuff)
that make up your wonderful, unique self. Think about what
you can do with those assets, and sort through your dreams
to see which could come true one day if you work towards
them. Be realistic. If you cannot sing a note, it is
unlikely that you would become a popular singer!
Now it's time to set some goals to help you get to your
dreams. You need to write some goals down, sort out which
are the most important goals, and then decide what are the
steps to take to help you get there. These "steps" should be
little steps, not gigantic leaps! If you were to have a goal
of running across the United States, you wouldn't begin the
steps by writing, "Tomorrow I will run across my home
state". That would be too big of a step! You would want to
begin by doing some easy jogging... working up to some local
fun runs... and slowly developing your running abilities
over many months and years. Then, after many years of
building your endurance abilities consistently and acquiring
experience in health and fitness, you would set up a
training schedule to specifically prepare for a run across
the United States.
You're going to want to decide what is your most important
goal. Then, write down all of the good things about reaching
that goal. If you run into a problem, sit down and think
about how you're going to work around it, or over it or
through it. Don't give up. Keep trying! Also, it's always
smart to tell friends, family members or teachers about your
goals. They'll likely encourage you!
If you meet a problem on the way to your goal, look back at
your steps and add in as many steps as needed to keep you
going. It doesn't matter if they're small steps. Remember,
it's wise to share your goals with others, such as your
parents. Many times when a person has success in reaching a
goal it's due to the help of others.
Important things to
remember as you work toward your goal:
Be realistic. Set small goals to start with. You can move to
the
bigger stuff when you get better at setting and reaching
goals.
Keep feeling positive. Don't let other people bring you
down.
Check your steps every day and read through your goal
again.
Believe you can do it. Doubt will keep your goal out of
reach!
Keep adding more small steps if it doesn't look like you're
making
much progress.
Tell someone you trust about what you're doing. Talking
about it
will: (1) keep you feeling good;
(2) help you work out your steps;
(3) help
you learn how to reach your goal; and, (4) encourage you.
Don't stress. Learn to relax so that you have the energy to
work
through the steps.
Have fun and enjoy the adventure toward your goal!
Never forget that the ultimate goal is doing your very best.
Take time to think about it...
Use the following questions below to think more about goals
and what you might want to aim for. You should
write your answers down so that you can keep your words to
look back on later.
If
you could become anything you wanted, or accomplish anything
you wanted in life, what would it be? What can you do to
make that happen? Are you doing it? (If not, why not?)
Think
of three things you'd like to accomplish in the next several
months. These must be things that are truly important to you
and within your ability to accomplish. For each one,
describe in detail what you will need to do in order to
succeed and lay out a plan for doing it (including
deadlines). Now that you have set three goals, try carrying
out your plans.
Write about a time when you succeeded at something
because you made it a goal and were committed to it.
- Describe what happened.
- How did that make you feel?
- What
did you learn from that experience?
Sometimes, despite our best plans and efforts, we fail
anyway. Write about a time when you tried to accomplish
something but came up short.
- Describe what happened.
- How did you deal with it?
- What did you learn from it?
- Did
anything positive come out of it?
Try
Something Really Cool!
Click on the planner cover below to open a new browser
window which will allow you to create your own plan for
going after your goals. It helps make goals easier to reach
by breaking them down into manageable steps. This is an
awesome tool created by the Nemours Foundation. After using
this tool to develop and plan a goal, you can print out your
own goal sheet to guide and inspire you. The planner also
provides examples of how other people reached their goals —
they did it, and you can too! Click the cover to begin!
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