LEAven Blog

Goals are a part of modern life. We are no longer satisfied with just doing our best. We must constantly remake ourselves into someone better. Often, we are required to set goals and make them SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound). There is always room for improvement. As our administrators put this pressure on us, we pass this along to our students. What are you going to do next to become a better student?

While setting and accomplishing goals is in itself a good practice and can be a big boost for the ego of high achievers, people who struggle to reach goals do not get the same boost. Some students have no idea where to start. Others are afraid of failure. Anyone who has failed to accomplish a goal knows the feelings that follow that failure – disappointment, regret, inferiority, even mild depression. “I missed the mark again.”

The problem for students and teachers is that we often set a goal that requires several steps to accomplish. Missing or failing at any of those steps often results in failure to accomplish the big goal. Maybe our goals would be SMART-er if we simplified them.

I have recently started working with students on setting small, one-step goals. We put the big-picture goal out there as a “someday” plan, but we then find a first step. What is one thing that I can commit to doing every day for the next month or eight weeks? This one thing should take 10 minutes or less per day. It should be a simple first step that I know whether or not I have completed. Building a daily habit takes work, but it is more likely to be continued than something that is done intermittently.

• One student wants to have better focus in math class, so she has committed to taking 5 deep breaths before math starts every day.
• Another student keeps his memory work in the car so that he can read it to himself daily on the way to school.

It is kind of like living by the adage, “A journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step.” We also made calendars and are checking in each day to see how we are doing. There is no pressure or prizes, just a check. When we reach the end of that time period, we decide, do I keep this goal, or move on to the next step?

Making a simple goal that I can do gives me a greater chance at success. That feeling of success can build my confidence to try another simple goal. Small steps forward are better than not moving or moving backward.

Learning how to set goals has become a part of our lives. Practicing setting achievable first-step goals will help students feel successful and make goal setting less scary.