Lecture 5

Goal Setting

Remember, if you are to be successful, you need to articulate clear goals for yourself.  Articulating a goal involves making a decision to follow a specific plan of action.  The decision making process, in turn, requires that you weigh the consequences of your choices.

When setting goals, you need to consider all aspects of your life—academic, personal, social.  In setting priorities be sure that you have a clear sense of where an activity would fall.  Is it work?  Is it play? Is it something else?  For a discussion of this issue, you may want to consider Mortimer Adler’s essay on idle leisure: Why It is So Important Not to be Busy All the Time.

Example

Assignment:

Read Descartes’ Discourse on Method for philosophy.

Scenario 1:

Because you anticipate it will be boring, you wait until the last minute to begin reading Descartes’ Discourse on Method for your philosophy course.  The assignment must be completed by 8:30 tomorrow morning.  It is now 8:00 p.m.  What are the likely consequences of this decision?

Scenario 2:

You understand that this assignment will be difficult, so you decide to start 1 or 2 days before the assignment is due.  To prepare for the reading, you formulate questions (based on what was said in the lecture) to guide you in the reading.  You divide the text into smaller segments and read a little at a time, stopping periodically to test your understanding. What are the likely consequences of this decision?

Planning Goals 

When planning goals, remember the word SMART. SMART goals are:

What does each of these characteristics mean?

Specific

According to the dictionary, the word specific can have a number of meanings. For our purposes, “specific” means that what you articulate should represent a particular talent, skill, etc. that you wish to address. Everyone has one or more talents.  What are you good at?

Activity: Identify your talents

Meaningful

Again, if we consult the dictionary, we find that something that is meaningful has a meaning or purpose; is significant.  What is significant to one person may not be significant to another. When formulating goals ask the following questions: Are these goals mine?  Do they reflect what I really want?  Again, consult the list above.

Action-Oriented

Sean Covey in the 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens talks about the importance of being proactive.  If one wishes to be successful, one must anticipate what might occur and plan for eventualities.  Don’t wait until something goes wrong and then have to come up with a plan to solve the problem.  Anticipation is also important because it allows us to envision what will happen when we reach our goals.

Realistic

If one’s goals are realistic, one has an expectation that they are achievable.  In Browning’s poem “Andrea del Sarto,"  the speaker says: “Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp / Or what’s a heaven for?” Although this statement clearly implies the need to reach for something that is presently not in our lives, it doesn’t mean that you should be totally unrealistic or impractical.  You need to have an expectation that the goal is something that is possible to fulfill.

Time-Bound

Goals shouldn’t be “open-ended.”  “Some day” or “one day” doesn’t motivate us to do what is necessary.  Set specific time limits and create sub-tasks that will allow you to measure your progress toward your goal.  Examine your progress on a daily basis.  Ask:  Is what I am doing today, taking me closer to my goal?  If not, change your behavior.

 

Activity: Track your goals online

Complete the Exercise: Goal Setting

See also

• "Setting Goals for Yourself, and Motivating Yourself to Succeed"
• Some online quizzes to test your study skills