Everyone spends much of their life seeking certain goals. The parts that drives people toward these goals is called the Goal Seeking Mechanism. This natural method of achievement is wasted when you aren’t clear about your goals. Clear goal-setting allows you to take advantage of your Goal Seeking Mechanism—it harnesses your natural motivations and makes real commitment possible.

In order to teach goal setting to your students, teach them:

  1. Rules for goal setting
  2. Create a plan
  3. Monitor progress
  4. Persistence

setting goals

Rules for goal setting

Here are seven rules for goal setting to teach your students for proper goal setting:

  1. Dare to dream. The first rule for goal setting is perhaps the most important: let yourself dream. Many people never let themselves dream for fear of falling short of their dreams. Dreams are the seeds that grow into success.
  2. Believe in your dreams. Everyone has a right to believe in their own success. In order to convert a dream to a goal which will be achieved, you must believe in it. Once a goal is believed in, it can be achieved.
  3. Define your goals. The next step to goal setting is to clearly define your goals. To do this, write a goal statement in simple, direct language. In order to write a good goal statement, use the following rules: Use an action verb. Make the statement measurable. Set a date.  State cost limitations.
  4. Prioritize your goals. Once you set priorities, you can learn to pursue two or more goals at one time. To create a list of priorities for your goals, all you need to do is list all of your goals and put them in order of importance.
  5. Do what it takes to achieve your goal. Successful people learn how to make their plans work. Most people are quite content to work eight hours a day, 40 hours a week, almost as if a 40 hour week is their goal. Successful people don’t put any time limits on their work.
  6. Be open to change. Successful people are flexible. They know that change always produces opportunities. They also know that, along the road of life, goals set in the past may have to be changed today
  7. Be willing to accept risk. The key here is to take sensible, calculated risks. In order to achieve goals, risks must be taken. In order to be successful, you need to learn how to live with risk.

plan

Create a plan

The following steps outline how to create a plan that will help your students achieve their goals:

  1. Identify the goal. Your goal statement should be simple and straightforward. Your goal should be something that is important to you and significant enough to warrant your effort and time.
  2. Identify what’s in it for you. Concentrate on both the positive and the negative. If there isn’t enough reason for you to pursue the goal, you shouldn’t.
  3. List the potential obstacles that may stand between you and achieving the goal. When doing this, be honest with yourself in identifying all of the potential, realistic obstacles that will be presented to you.
  4. Ask for advice. Before you set out in search of your goal, look for people who have obtained similar goals. Talk to them. Ask them how they did it. Ask them what to look out for in the process.
  5. List the skills, knowledge and resources necessary to obtain your goal. This is a very important step. Most people forget that with the achievement of every goal comes a cost, both monetary and human.
  6. Ask yourself honest questions. Do you have the skills, the knowledge, and the money to obtain this potential goal? If not, you can plan ways to get what you need.
  7. Set a deadline for achieving your goals. While considering your potential goal, it is important to set deadlines for yourself so that you do not procrastinate and put off the decision-making process.

monitor progress

Monitor progress

Have your students set their goals and establish a tracking process. Now that they know how to set and achieve goals, they will take that knowledge and make it a reality. It’s very important, before they commit, to select appropriate goals, to track their progress and to make the necessary adjustments along the way.

handle setbacks

Persistence

Teach your students to learn to handle setbacks. Setbacks will almost always occur when trying to accomplish a goal. After making a commitment, your students may encounter many challenges. A good rule to remember when facing challenges or setbacks is, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” Remember that it’s not about getting it perfect right away.  It is how you handle the setbacks that matters.

Thanks for tuning into our post about teaching interpersonal commitment to your students. If you want to learn more about developing or teaching soft skills, sign up for a free soft skills webinar here.