Tips for Setting Goals Effectively

Excerpt from the LEAP Module: Goal Setting for Higher Performance

Setting Goals Effectively
The way in which you set a goal strongly affects the effectiveness. The following broad guidelines apply to setting effective goals:

• Be Positive: express your goals positively: 'Execute this technique well' is a much better goal than 'don't make this stupid mistake'.
  
• Be Precise: if you set a precise goal, putting in dates, times and amounts so that achievement can be measured, then you know the exact goal to be achieved, and can take complete satisfaction from having completely achieved it. 
• Set Priorities: where you have several goals, give each a priority. This helps you to avoid feeling overwhelmed by too many goals, and helps to direct your attention to the most important ones. 
• Write Goals Down to avoid confusion and give them more force. 
• Keep Daily Operational Goals Small: Keep the goals you are working towards immediately, small and achievable. If a goal is too large, then it can seem that you are not making progress towards it. Keeping operational goals small and incremental gives more opportunities for reward. Today's goals should be derived from larger goals.

Important!  You should note a number of general principles about goal setting:

1. Set Performance, Not Outcome Goals
2. Set Specific, Measurable Goals
3. Set Goals at the Right Level
4. Think Through Your Goals
   

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