Simple question: Do you know what you are trying to achieve (in your education or just in life in general) - and why? Really think about that question. It's more important that anything. If you don't understand what you're trying to achieve or why you're trying to achieve it then you have absolutely no hope of getting there. Why? Well where are you trying to get to anyway? You haven't even defined it remember! So step one is to create a goal want to achieve and a goal you actually understand.
Once you have established the "what" and the "why", you can move to the next step - the "who". As in, who do you need to be to make sure that goal happens? What sort of actions do you need to take? How will you know if you are really on track or if you are just kidding yourself? Are you becoming the person you need to become to achieve the goal? Or are you just hoping that you can be exactly as you are now and still achieve the goal?
In other words, do you improve yourself each day in order to become the person you need to be in order to achieve the goal you want to achieve - or do you change nothing and do nothing and just hope everything will somehow work out for the best? Remember, be honest!
Achieving a goal is a process not an event. The problem is that people don't like processes - we like events! You see, we like to get an A+ on our Maths test, but we don't want to do the study and homework required (i.e. the process) to get the A+, we just want the event - the great score! We like the idea of looking fit and healthy but we don't like part where we have to eat well and exercise constantly. Do we? It all makes sense when you understand that we don't like the process - we just like the events.
The same goes for our education. We all want to be smart and learned (I hope!) But going through each grade and passing each test and handing in each assignment and doing all our homework and getting good grades is really hard work.
The process of passing school is hard, the process of being an A+ student is even harder. However, the events along the way, such as getting a good grade on a test, or getting a good report card, or getting into the College of your choice, are the enjoyable "events" (i.e. the rewards) for going through the process.
So what does this mean to us in terms of goal setting and goal achievement? Given that we now know that we don't like processes and we do like events, it makes a lot of sense that we may enjoy setting goals such as "I want an A average in all of my subjects" but we don't like doing the hard work to make sure that the goals actually happen. The process is hard and can be boring and tedious. We want the event (A average for every subject) not the hard work!
So, when you set a goal you need to consider the process of how this goal is going to come about. If you decide that you want to get an A+ in Maths (and by the way rule number one of goal setting is to make the goal specific not airy fairy like "I want to improve in Math") then what you really need to ask yourself is "Who do I need to become to achieve an A+ in Maths? What actions do I need to take on a daily basis to achieve an A+ in Maths?"
Achieving goals doesn't happen by chance. You must understand what the goal is and why it is important - and then you must make the decision to go through the process in order to reach the event. If you focus on the event (which is what we are inclined to do) you will find it very difficult to get through the process. If you focus only on the event, the process won't happen and the goal won't be achieved. What will you decide?
Once you have established the "what" and the "why", you can move to the next step - the "who". As in, who do you need to be to make sure that goal happens? What sort of actions do you need to take? How will you know if you are really on track or if you are just kidding yourself? Are you becoming the person you need to become to achieve the goal? Or are you just hoping that you can be exactly as you are now and still achieve the goal?
In other words, do you improve yourself each day in order to become the person you need to be in order to achieve the goal you want to achieve - or do you change nothing and do nothing and just hope everything will somehow work out for the best? Remember, be honest!
Achieving a goal is a process not an event. The problem is that people don't like processes - we like events! You see, we like to get an A+ on our Maths test, but we don't want to do the study and homework required (i.e. the process) to get the A+, we just want the event - the great score! We like the idea of looking fit and healthy but we don't like part where we have to eat well and exercise constantly. Do we? It all makes sense when you understand that we don't like the process - we just like the events.
The same goes for our education. We all want to be smart and learned (I hope!) But going through each grade and passing each test and handing in each assignment and doing all our homework and getting good grades is really hard work.
The process of passing school is hard, the process of being an A+ student is even harder. However, the events along the way, such as getting a good grade on a test, or getting a good report card, or getting into the College of your choice, are the enjoyable "events" (i.e. the rewards) for going through the process.
So what does this mean to us in terms of goal setting and goal achievement? Given that we now know that we don't like processes and we do like events, it makes a lot of sense that we may enjoy setting goals such as "I want an A average in all of my subjects" but we don't like doing the hard work to make sure that the goals actually happen. The process is hard and can be boring and tedious. We want the event (A average for every subject) not the hard work!
So, when you set a goal you need to consider the process of how this goal is going to come about. If you decide that you want to get an A+ in Maths (and by the way rule number one of goal setting is to make the goal specific not airy fairy like "I want to improve in Math") then what you really need to ask yourself is "Who do I need to become to achieve an A+ in Maths? What actions do I need to take on a daily basis to achieve an A+ in Maths?"
Achieving goals doesn't happen by chance. You must understand what the goal is and why it is important - and then you must make the decision to go through the process in order to reach the event. If you focus on the event (which is what we are inclined to do) you will find it very difficult to get through the process. If you focus only on the event, the process won't happen and the goal won't be achieved. What will you decide?
About the Author:
HelpMeToStudy.org is the premier resource for learning new study skills, transforming your study habits and discovering the best study tips available. We will help change the way you think about study - and even better - we will show you how to study effectively: How To Study Effectively | How To Set Goals
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