W HAT ARE GOALS ? Goals are clear statements of things you want to accomplish or solve in the future. They can be about personal, educational, or career aims, such as “I want to become a better soccer player,” or “I will work toward getting a raise in the next six months,” or “I should refinance my mortgage.” They include the specific steps you must take in order to achieve them, creating a strategic plan for you to follow. Goals also identify the obstacles you must over- come and things you might need to acquire, such as knowledge or help from others.  Why Set Goals? You have learned how to define and clearly understand problems in Lessons 1 through 3, and how to brain- storm possible solutions in Lesson 4. Goal setting is the next important skill that takes you from being faced with problems and decisions, to solving them effectively. LESSON Setting Goals LESSON SUMMARY This lesson is about making a plan to get you from problem to solu- tion. That plan takes shape when you set a goal. The clearer you are about where you want to be, and the steps you need to take in order to get there, the more likely you are to attain your goals. 5 43 understand problem clearly brainstorm solutions set goals to achieve solution (Lessons 1–3) (Lesson 4) (this lesson) Setting goals helps you make things happen. Goals give you a focus, and even a map, showing how to get from where you are to where you want to be. – SETTING GOALS – 44  Five Qualities of a Valuable Goal Valuable goals are: ■ in writing—create a document of your goal ■ specific—use as much detail as possible to explain what you want to accomplish ■ measurable—describe your goal in terms that can be clearly evaluated ■ realistic—don’t set the goal too high or too low; you must be capable of reaching it with time and effort ■ deadline-oriented—determine a completion date; the achievement of your goal must hap- pen in a reasonable time, not “in a few weeks,” or “some time in the future” The Goal Setting Chart below is a guideline. Depending on your goal, you may not need to fill out each section, or you may need to add a section or sec- tions. Be flexible, but keep in mind the five qualities described above. For example, your grades are not good, and you know you can do better. Following Lessons 1–3, you have a clear understanding of the problem. Following Lesson 4, you have brainstormed possible solutions by creating a Problem/Solution Outline that looks like this (next page): Goal Setting Chart Goal: What is in my way: How I will achieve my goal: Step 1: Step 2: Step 3: What I need to accomplish goal: Timeline for accomplishing goal: Daily: Weekly: When needed: Monthly or long term: What I will get from goal: – SETTING GOALS – 45 too much time socializing; study skills weak grades are not good limit time on phone and computer after school, pay better attention in class, buy and use workbook on improving study skills parents upset, don’t make honor roll, can’t get into advanced level courses Possible Solutions Causes Problem Effects To create a goal based on this problem, you will need to focus on the solutions you brainstormed, and cre- ate a plan to implement them effectively. Goal Setting Chart Goal: to get no grade below a B next marking period (which ends March 14) What is in my way: too much socializing, poor study skills How I will achieve my goal: Step 1: cut back on socializing: do not sit with friends during class; no phone calls or computer until homework is done Step 2: improve study skills; buy workbook on study skills and complete one practice exercise every day; keep notebooks organized by cleaning them out every day after school; make a file folder at home for each class; do homework every day at desk; ask teacher(s) for help if I don’t understand something What I need to accomplish goal: study skills workbook, file folders Timeline for accomplishing goal: Daily: no socializing in class or after school until homework is done; study skills workbook, clean out notebooks; complete all homework assignments Weekly: file assignments, tests, and quizzes When needed: ask teacher for help; complete missing assignments Long term: keep up plan for getting better grades What I will get from goal: better education; feeling of accomplishment; name on honor roll; respect of par- ents and teachers Practice Let’s go back to an example from Lesson 4. You were trying to save $50 a month but had trouble limiting your spending of discretionary income. Using a web, you brainstormed possible solutions. Now, make the monthly investment a goal and use any or all of your possible solutions to complete the following goal chart. Goal Setting Chart Goal: What is in my way: How I will achieve my goal: Step 1: Step 2: Step 3: What I need to accomplish goal: Timeline for accomplishing goal: Daily: Weekly: When needed: Monthly or long term: What I will get from goal: – SETTING GOALS – 46 Answer Answers will vary depending on brainstormed possible solutions. Using the answer from Lesson 4, the goal chart looks like this: Goal Setting Chart Goal: to save $50 a month What is in my way: spending too much so I do not have the money to invest (habits I need to break) How I will achieve my goal: Step 1: limit restaurant meals to two times a week; buy takeout from supermarket other nights; buy cookbook and pick out one recipe a week to try Step 2: rent one movie a week, put in briefcase when done watching it so I will return it on way to work Step 3: limit clothing purchases to $100 a month; watch ads for sales and shop them What I need to accomplish goal: willpower to change habits! Timeline for accomplishing goal: Daily: read newspaper for ads for clothing sales; shop for and/or eat dinner according to weekly plan Weekly: rent one movie and return it the next day; make a plan for each night’s dinner (restaurant, take out, cooking) When needed: shop for clothes on sale Monthly or long term: set up investment account, and have $50 automatically withdrawn for bank account each month What I will get from goal: money to use for long-term goals and/or emergencies – SETTING GOALS – 47  What Becomes a Goal? When you are brainstorming, you come up with vari- ous possible solutions to a problem. But which one is worth pursuing? Goal setting is about choosing the best solution and creating a plan to make it happen. To do this, you need to clearly define your goal. What is it, exactly, that you wish for an outcome? Since every pos- sible solution is different (by varying degrees) it can lead to different outcomes. Evaluate the ideas you came up with during brainstorming based on the specific cri- teria you set for your goal. Example You work for a company that manufactures run- ning shoes. Compared to figures from a year ago, profits and sales are slumping. You are asked to come up with a solution that will increase both. While brainstorming, you come up with three possible solutions: a. start a major marketing campaign b. limit the availability of the product/service to increase demand c. lower costs so that profit margins are increased Let’s look at each of these possible solutions and their probable outcomes. A large marketing campaign would most likely increase sales. Limiting the avail- ability to increase demand would eventually lead to higher prices and greater profits, with a possible increase in sales. But lowering costs would most likely result in increasing sales and is a better way to increase both sales and profit. Therefore, it makes sense, once you have evaluated your possible solutions in terms of possible outcomes, to choose solution c. Practice Your bathroom needs a major repair due to a plumb- ing leak under your bathtub and you decide it is a good time to renovate it. Everything is dated, the toilet tank is cracked, the faucets leak, and the tiles are an unap- pealing avocado green. The tub must be destroyed in order to fix the leak.You have worked out a budget after pricing new tiles, tub, vanity, sink, and toilet, and get- ting a quote from the workmen who will install them. The problem is that you don’t have $2,500 sitting around to pay for the job. After doing some brainstorming, you come up with three possible solutions: 1. charge everything on a credit card 2. take out a home equity loan 3. have just the plumbing repair done now, which costs $700, and wait to do the rest of the job later How should you proceed? __________________________________________ __________________________________________ __________________________________________ __________________________________________ __________________________________________ Answer There are three possibilities. The answer lies in how you define your goal and how you evaluate the possible solutions in light of that definition. Therefore, the first step is to clarify your goal. Your bathroom is dated and in disrepair, and you would like to redo it. This seems like a good time, because some of the tile, as well as the tub, is going to be torn out and replaced in order to fix a leaky pipe. The first possible solution, to charge everything on your charge card, could work. You need to figure out how much you could pay each month and the interest rate you would be charged. How many months would it take to pay off the debt and how much would it cost? If the answer is quickly, and the interest charge is low, this solution would make sense. Solution 2 makes sense if the interest rate is lower than the credit card. You might even be able to deduct the interest you pay from your income tax. If the cost of borrowing the money from the bank, using your home as collateral, is lower than solution 1, this is the best choice. Solution 3 will cost you no money in interest because you will not need to borrow. However, you will also still need to redo your bathroom and have to tem- porarily patch up areas where tile was removed. If solu- tion 1 or 2 is not too costly, it probably makes sense to choose one of them. You must have some major dem- olition work done to fix the leak, and the plumber will already be at your home. This is the time when you can get the whole job done least expensively.  Roadblock to Setting Goals A common problem with goals is that they are set too large. If they cover too much ground, or are about accomplishing something that will take a long time, your goals may be difficult to reach or you may grow tired of your plan before you complete it. When you set – SETTING GOALS – 48 a goal, look at the number of steps you specified as well as your timeline. Do the size and time period seem rea- sonable? Can you picture yourself following the plan as you wrote it to its conclusion? If you have a doubt, it may be best to break down the original goal into smaller, more manageable ones. For example, your goal is to ask for a raise in six months. You have filled out a goal chart as follows: – SETTING GOALS – 49 Goal Setting Chart Goal: I will ask for a raise in six months. What is in my way: my job performance evaluation last month rated me “average” How I will achieve my goal: Step 1: I will work longer hours and get more done at work Step 2: I will do become more knowledgeable about my company and figure out ways to use my skills to my and my company’s advantage What I need to accomplish goal: time, knowledge Timeline for accomplishing goal: Daily: be the first one into work and the last one out at night Weekly: write a memo to my boss about what I have accomplished; check news for any stories about my company; read all material published by my company, including prospectus and other stock holders’ information When needed: meet with my boss to tell her about special accomplishments Monthly or long term: check to see if I can help other employees with their projects What I will get from goal: better evaluation, chance to get higher salary Evaluate this goal in terms of its objectives and timeline. This person is giving himself six months to improve his job performance and to learn more about his company, which does not seem unreasonable. But look at the timeline. He expects that he will do all of these things for the next 26 weeks, which could be dif- ficult. Come in early and leave late every day? It would be better to break down the goal into more manageable pieces that he would not become tired of. Perhaps he could even leave the deadline in place, but change the timeline. For instance, the overall goal is to ask for a raise in six months. For the first month, he will con- centrate on improving his image with his boss by com- ing in early and leaving late. Then, during the second month, work hard during normal business hours, and concentrate on reading information about the com- pany at home on the weekend. During the third month, he might check for news items about his company once a week, but concentrate on brainstorming ways to help other employees. By breaking down the one large goal with its six- month timeline into smaller goals of one month each, the employee is more likely to follow through with his plan. This point goes back to the fourth quality of a valuable goal (see page 44): they are realistic. Be hon- est when you evaluate the goals you set. If you have doubts at the beginning as to whether you can accom- plish it as set, go back and try to break it down into more manageable pieces.  In Short This lesson shows you how to set goals that you can achieve, every time. By using the goal setting chart, you create a map that helps lead you from problem to solu- tion. Setting goals requires you to think through a strat- egy and break it down into manageable steps. It means setting a deadline, and deciding exactly what you will do, and when, in order to achieve your goal. It also means choosing the right possible solution as your aim and honestly evaluating your goal to be certain it is rea- sonable. By setting good goals, you can move from where you are (faced with a problem or decision) to where you want to be (having an effective solution). – SETTING GOALS – 50 ■ Choose a short-term goal for yourself, such as a household repair. Using the list of five qualities of a valuable goal (see page 44), determine how you will get the repair accomplished. Set a dead- line, be specific about what exactly you need to do, and write it all down as a visual reminder of what you will accomplish. ■ For a longer-term goal, such as going back to school or something else that will take you a few weeks or months to achieve, use the goal setting chart. Break down the goal if necessary and include every step you must take, as well as when those steps will be taken. Create a map that shows how you will get from where you are to where you want to be. Skill Building Until Next Time . to use for long-term goals and/or emergencies – SETTING GOALS – 47  What Becomes a Goal? When you are brainstorming, you come up with vari- ous possible. set goals that you can achieve, every time. By using the goal setting chart, you create a map that helps lead you from problem to solu- tion. Setting goals