A Goal Is a Start. A Plan Helps You Get There.

What Is a Goal, Anyway?

Suppose there is something you really want to do tonight. Maybe a show on TV, maybe a game you want to play online with a friend, or something else starts at 7:00 and you do not want to miss it. Your goal: be there at 7:00. That part is easy. A goal begins with something you want to happen, change, learn or accomplish. But wanting it does not clear the path to 7:00. What if your room still has to be cleaned? What if the garbage has to be taken out? What if something else needs to be finished first? Suddenly there is a difference between having a goal and setting yourself up to reach it. That second part is what goal setting is really about.

Think about it: If you really wanted to be ready by 7:00, what would you get done ahead of time so you were free when 7:00 arrived?

Does Wanting Something Make It Happen?

Most of the time, not. It is 6:50 and all those things you were supposed to do are still waiting. The goal was real. You wanted it. The problem was not the goal. You just did not make a plan for the things that could get in the way. Now rewind. You know you need to take out the garbage and finish another job before 7:00, so you decide when you will do each one. Same goal, but now you have made room for it to happen. A useful goal gives you something to aim for. A plan works out what you need to do to give yourself a good chance of reaching it.

Try it: You want to be free at 7:00, but you have two jobs to finish first. What could you do now instead of waiting until 6:50?

Can We Try Goal Setting Together?

Now your class is going to try this together. Your teacher will lead everyone through the same four-minute movement activity. There is nothing to win and nobody is being tested. Just follow along and see how it goes. When the four minutes are over, your teacher will ask one simple question: Could our class keep the activity going for the full four minutes? Maybe you did. Maybe there were a few stops while everyone figured out what came next. Either way, you now have a starting point. For the second try, the class goal is simple: keep the activity going for the full four minutes. This time, however, you are not just going to hope it happens. The class is going to make a plan first.

Make the plan: What could we change before our second try that would help us keep going for the full four minutes?

What If the Plan Does Not Work?

"It's not about perfection. It's about progression. "

Coach: K. DeZutter

Now try the activity again using your class plan. Did you reach the four-minute goal? Maybe you did. Maybe you got closer but something still did not work the way you expected. That does not make the plan a failure. It gives you something useful to work with. What got in the way? Is there one part of the plan you could change before trying again? Or did you discover that the goal itself needs to change? A plan is not something you write once and obey forever. You use it, learn from what happened, and change it when you see a way to make it work better. Then you try again.

Your call: What worked in your class plan? What would you change before another try?

When Does a Goal Start Becoming Yours?

The first time, your teacher helped. The class shared the goal. You worked out a plan together, tried it, checked what happened and made a change. That was practice. Eventually, you get to take over more of that thinking. You decide what you want to happen. You work out a next step. You find a time or a reminder that will help you actually do it. You notice what gets in the way. Then you check whether your plan worked and change it when you need to. You will not reach every goal you set. Nobody does. The useful part is learning that what you do before, during and after a goal can give you a much better chance than simply hoping it happens.

Take it with you: Finish this sentence: A goal tells me ________. A plan helps me ________.