The Importance, Benefits, and Value of Goal Setting

The Importance, Benefits, and Value of Goal Setting

We all know that setting goals is important, but we often don’t realize how important they are as we continue to move through life.

Goal setting does not have to be boring. There are many benefits and advantages to having a set of goals to work towards.

Setting goals helps trigger new behaviors, helps guides your focus and helps you sustain that momentum in life.

Goals also help align your focus and promote a sense of self-mastery. In the end, you can’t manage what you don’t measure and you can’t improve upon something that you don’t properly manage. Setting goals can help you do all of that and more.

In this article, we will review the importance and value of goal setting as well as the many benefits.

We will also look at how goal setting can lead to greater success and performance. Setting goals not only motivates us, but can also improve our mental health and our level of personal and professional success.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Goal Achievement Exercises for free . These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or your clients create actionable goals and master techniques to create lasting behavior change.

This Article Contains:

The importance and value of goal setting, why set goals in life, what are the benefits of goal setting, 5 proven ways goal setting is effective, how can goal setting improve performance, how goal setting motivates individuals, why is goal setting important for students, a look at the importance of goal setting in mental health, the importance of goal setting in business and organizations, 10 quotes on the value and importance of setting goals, a take-home message.

Up until 2001, goals were divided into three types or groups (Elliot & McGregor, 2001):

  • Mastery goals
  • Performance-approach goals
  • Performance-avoidance goals

A mastery goal is a goal someone sets to accomplish or master something such as “ I will score higher in this event next time .”

A performance-approach goal is a goal where someone tries to do better than his or her peers. This type of goal could be a goal to look better by losing 5 pounds or getting a better performance review.

A performance-avoidance goal is a goal where someone tries to avoid doing worse than their peers such as a goal to avoid negative feedback.

Research done by Elliot and McGregor in 2001 changed these assumptions. Until this study was published, it was assumed that mastery goals were the best and performance-approach goals were at times good, and other times bad. Performance-avoidance goals were deemed the worst, and, in fact, bad.

The implied assumption, as a result of this, was that there were no bad mastery goals or mastery-avoidance goals.

Elliot and McGregor’s study challenged those assumptions by proving that master-avoidance goals do exist and proving that each type of goal can, in fact, be useful depending on the circumstances.

Elliot and McGregor’s research utilized a 2 x 2 achievement goal framework comprised of:

  • Mastery-approach
  • Mastery-avoidance
  • Performance-approach
  • Performance-avoidance

These variables were tested in 3 studies. In experiments one and two, explanatory factor analysis was used to break down 12 goal-setting questions into 4 factors, as seen in the diagram below.

Goal Setting

Confirmatory factor analysis was used at a later date to show that mastery-avoidance and mastery-approach fit the data better than mastery alone.

The questions for these studies were created from a series of pilot studies and prior questionnaires. Once all of the questions were combined, a factor-analysis was utilized to confirm that each set of questions expressed different goal-setting components.

Results of these studies showed that those with a high motive to achieve were much more likely to use approach goals. Those with a high motive to avoid failure, on the other hand, were much more likely to use avoidance goals.

The third experiment examined the same four achievement goal variables and revealed that those more likely to use performance-approach goals were more likely to have higher exam scores, while those who used performance-avoidance goals were more likely to have lower exam scores.

According to the research, motivation in achievement settings is complex, and achievement goals are but one of several types of operative variables to be considered.

Achievement goal regulation, or the actual pursuit of the goal, implicates both the achievement goal itself as well as some other typically higher order factors such as motivationally relevant variables, according to the research done by Elliot and McGregor.

As we can clearly see, the research on goal setting is quite robust.

the importance of setting goals essay

Mark Murphy the founder and CEO of LeadershipIQ.com and author of the book “ Hard Goals : The Secret to Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be ,” has gone through years of research in science and how the brain works and how we are wired as a human being as it pertains to goal setting.

Murphy’s book “ Hard Goals: The Secret to Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be” combines the latest research in psychology and brain science on goal-setting as well as the law of attraction to help fine-tune the process.

A HARD goal is an achieved goal, according to Murphy (2010). Murphy tells us to put our present cost into the future and our future benefit into the present.

What this really means is don’t put off until tomorrow what you could do today. We tend to value things in the present moment much more than we value things in the future.

Setting goals is a process that changes over time. The goals you set in your twenties will most likely be very different from the goals you set in your forties.

the importance of setting goals essay

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Edward Locke and Gary Latham (1990) are leaders in goal-setting theory. According to their research, goals not only affect behavior as well as job performance, but they also help mobilize energy which leads to a higher effort overall. Higher effort leads to an increase in persistent effort.

Goals help motivate us to develop strategies that will enable us to perform at the required goal level.

Accomplishing the goal can either lead to satisfaction and further motivation or frustration and lower motivation if the goal is not accomplished.

Goal setting can be a very powerful technique, under the right conditions according to the research (Locke & Latham, 1991).

According to Lunenburg (2011), the motivational impact of goals may, in fact, be affected by moderators such as self-efficacy and ability as well.

goal setting

In the 1968 article “ Toward a Theory of Task Motivation ” Locke showed us that clear goals and appropriate feedback served as a good motivator for employees (Locke, 1968).

Locke’s research also revealed that working toward a goal is a major source of motivation, which, in turn, improves performance.

Locke reviewed over a decade of research of laboratory and field studies on the effects of goal setting and performance. Locke found that over 90% of the time, goals that were specific and challenging, but not overly challenging, led to higher performance when compared to easy goals or goals that were too generic such as a goal to do your best.

Dr. Gary Latham also studied the effects of goal setting in the workplace. Latham’s results supported Locke’s findings and showed there is indeed a link that is inseparable between goal setting and workplace performance.

Locke and Latham published work together in 1990 with their work “ A Theory of Goal Setting & Task Performance ” stressing the importance of setting goals that were both specific and difficult.

Locke and Latham also stated that there are five goal-setting principles that can help improve your chances of success.

  • Task Complexity

Clarity is important when it comes to goals. Setting goals that are clear and specific eliminate the confusion that occurs when a goal is set in a more generic manner.

Challenging goals stretch your mind and cause you to think bigger. This helps you accomplish more. Each success you achieve helps you build a winning mindset.

Commitment is also important. If you don’t commit to your goal with everything you have it is less likely you will achieve it.

Feedback helps you know what you are doing right and how you are doing. This allows you to adjust your expectations and your plan of action going forward.

Task Complexity is the final factor. It’s important to set goals that are aligned with the goal’s complexity.

Why the secret to success is setting the right goals – John Doerr

Goal setting and task performance were studied by Locke and Latham (1991). Goal setting theory is based upon the simplest of introspective observations, specifically, that conscious human behavior is purposeful.

This behavior is regulated by one’s goals. The directedness of those goals characterizes the actions of all living organisms including things like plants.

Goal-setting theory, according to the research, states that the simplest and most direct motivational explanation on why some people perform better than others is because they have different performance goals.

Two attributes have been studied in relation to performance:

In regard to content, the two aspects that have been focused on include specificity and difficulty. Goal content can range from vague to very specific as well as difficult or not as difficult.

Difficulty depends upon the relationship someone has to the task. The same task or goal can be easy for one person, and more challenging for the next, so it’s all relative.

On average though the higher the absolute level is of a goal, the more difficult it is to achieve. According to research, there have been more than 400 studies that have examined the relationship of goal attributes to task performance.

According to Locke and Latham (1991), it has been consistently found that performance is a linear function of a goal’s difficulty.

Given an adequate level of ability and commitment, the harder a goal, the higher the performance.

What the researchers discovered was that people normally adjust their level of effort to the difficulty of the goal. As a result, they try harder for difficult goals when compared to easier goals.

The principle of goal-directed action is not restricted to conscious action, according to the research.

Goal-directed action is defined by three attributes, according to Lock & Latham.

  • Self-generation
  • Value-significance
  • Goal-causation

Self-generation refers to the source of energy integral to the organism. Value-significance refers to the idea that the actions not only make it possible but necessary to the organism’s survival. Goal-causation means the resulting action is caused by a goal.

While we can see that all living organisms experience some kind of goal-related action, humans are the only organisms that possess a higher form of consciousness, at least according to what we know at this point in time.

When humans take purposeful action, they set goals in order to achieve them.

the importance of setting goals essay

Locke and Latham have also shown us that there is an important relationship between goals and performance.

Locke and Latham’s research supports the idea that the most effective performance seems to be the result of goals being both specific and challenging. When goals are used to evaluate performance and linked to feedback on results, they create a sense of commitment and acceptance.

The researchers also found that the motivational impact of goals may be affected by ability and self-efficacy, or one’s belief that they can achieve something.

It was also found that deadlines helped improve the effectiveness of a goal and a learning goal orientation leads to higher performance when compared to a performance goal orientation.

Research done by Moeller, Theiler, and Wu (2012) examined the relationship between goal setting and student achievement at the classroom level.

This research examined a 5-year quasi-experimental study, which looked at goal setting and student achievement in the high school Spanish language classroom.

A tool known as LinguaFolio was used, and introduced into 23 high schools with a total of 1,273 students.

The study portfolio focused on student goal setting , self-assessment and a collection of evidence of language achievement.

Researchers used a hierarchical linear model, and then analyzed the relationship between goal setting and student achievement. This research was done at both the individual student and teacher levels.

A correlational analysis of the goal-setting process as well as language proficiency scores revealed a statistically significant relationship between the process of setting goals and language achievement (p < .01).

The research also looked at the importance of autonomy or one’s ability to take responsibility for their learning. Autonomy is a long-term aim of education, according to the study as well as a key factor in learning a language successfully.

There has been a paradigm shift in language education from teacher to student-centered learning, which makes the idea of autonomy even more important.

Goal setting in language learning is commonly regarded as one of the strategies that encourage a student’s sense of autonomy (Moeller, Theiler & Wu, 2012)

The results of the study revealed that there was a consistent increase over time in the main goal, plan of action and reflection scores of high school Spanish learners.

This trend held true for all levels except for the progression from third to fourth year Spanish for action plan writing and goal setting. The greatest improvement in goal setting occurred between the second and third levels of Spanish.

Mindful Yoga-Based ACT

In one study , that looked at goal setting and wellbeing, people participated in three short one-hour sessions where they set goals.

The researchers compared those who set goals to a control group, that didn’t complete the goal-setting exercise . The results showed a causal relationship between goal setting and subjective wellbeing.

Weinberger, Mateo, and Sirey (2009) also looked at perceived barriers to mental health care and goal setting amongst depressed, community-dwelling older adults.

Forty-seven participants completed the study, which examined various barriers to mental health and goal setting. These barriers include:

  • Psychological barriers such as social attitudes, beliefs about depression and stigmas.
  • Logistical barriers such as transportation and availability of services.
  • Illness-related barriers that are either modifiable or not such as depression severity, comorbid anxiety, cognitive status, etc.

For individuals who perceive a large number of barriers to be overcome, a mental health referral can seem burdensome as opposed to helpful.

Defining a personal goal for treatment may be something that is helpful and even something that can increase the relevance of seeking help and improving access to care according to the study.

Goal setting has been shown to help improve the outcome in treatment, amongst studies done in adults with depression. (Weinberger, Mateo, & Sirey, 2009)

The process of goal setting has even become a major focus in several of the current psychotherapies used to treat depression. Some of the therapies that have used goal setting include:

  • Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT)
  • Cognitive and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CT, CBT)
  • Problem-Solving Therapy (PST)

Participants who set goals, according to the study, were more likely to accept a mental health referral. Goal setting seems to be a necessary and good first step when it comes to helping a depressed older adult take control of their wellbeing.

Workplace coaching for teams

Most of us have been taught from a young age that setting goals can help us accomplish more and get better organized.

Goals help motivate us and help us organize our thoughts. Throughout evolutionary psychology, however, a conscious activity like goal setting has often been downplayed.

Psychoanalysis put the focus on the unconscious part of the mind, while cognitive behaviorists argue that external factors are of greater importance.

In 1968, Edward A. Locke formally developed something he called goal-setting theory, as an alternative to all of this.

Goal-setting theory helps us understand that setting goals are a conscious process and a very effective and efficient means when it comes to increasing productivity and motivation, especially in the workplace.

According to Gary P. Latham, the former President of the Canadian Psychological Association, the underlying premise of goal-setting theory is that our conscious goals affect what we achieve. Our goals are the object or the aim of our action.

This viewpoint is not aligned with the traditional cognitive behaviorism, which looks at human behavior as something that is conducted by external stimuli.

This view tells us that just like a mechanic works on a car, other people often work on our brains, without us even realizing it, and this, in turn, determines how we behave.

Goal setting theory goes beyond this assumption, telling us that our internal cognitive functions are equally important, if not more, when determining our behavior.

In order for our conscious cognition to be effective, we must direct and orient our behavior toward the world. That is the real purpose of a goal.

According to Locke and Latham, there is an important relationship between goals and performance.

Research supports the prediction that the most effective performance often results when goals are both specific and challenging in nature.

A learning goal orientation often leads to higher performance when compared to a performance goal orientation, according to the research.

Deadlines also improve the effectiveness of a goal. Goals have a pervasive influence on both employee behaviors and performance in organizations and management practice according to Locke and Latham (2002).

According to the research, nearly every modern organization has some type of psychological goal setting program in its operation.

Programs like management by objectives, (MBO), high-performance work practices (HPWP) and management information systems (MIS) all use benchmarking to stretch targets and plan strategically, all of which involve goal setting to some extent.

Fred C. Lunenburg, a professor at Sam Houston State University, summarized these points in the International Journal of Management, Business, and Administration journal article “Goal-Setting Theory of Motivation” (Lunenburg, 2011).

Specific: Specificity tells us that in order for a goal to be successful, it must also be specific. Goals such as I will do better next time are much too vague and general to motivate us.

Something more specific would be to state: I will spend at least 2 hours a day this week in order to finish the report by the deadline . This goal motivates us into action and holds us accountable.

Difficult but still attainable : Goals must, of course, be attainable, but they shouldn’t be too easy. Goals that are too simple may even cause us to give up. Goals should be challenging enough to motivate us without causing us undue stress.

Process of Acceptance : If we are continually given goals by other people, and we don’t truly accept them, we will most likely continue to fail. Accepting a goal and owning a goal is the key to success.

One way to do this on an organizational level is to bring team members together to discuss and set goals.

Feedback and evaluation : When a goal is accomplished, it makes us feel good. It gives us a sense of satisfaction. If we don’t get any feedback, this sense of pleasure will quickly go away and the accomplishment may even be meaningless.

In the workplace, continuous feedback helps give us a sense that our work and contributions matter. This goes beyond measuring a single goal.

When goals are used for performance evaluation, they are often much more effective.

Learning beyond our performance : While goals can be used as a means by which to give us feedback and evaluate our performance, the real beauty of goal setting is the fact that it helps us learn something new.

When we learn something new, we develop new skills and this helps us move up in the workplace.

Learning-oriented goals can also be very helpful when it comes to helping us discover life-meaning which can help increase productivity.

Performance-oriented goals, on the other hand, force an employee to prove what he or she can or cannot do, which is often counterproductive.

These types of goals are also less likely to produce a sense of meaning and pleasure. If we lack that sense of satisfaction, when it comes to setting and achieving a goal, we are less likely to learn and grow and explore.

Group goals : Setting group goals is also vitally important for companies. Just as individuals have goals, so too must groups and teams, and even committees. Group goals help bring people together and allow them to develop and work on the same goals.

This helps create a sense of community, as well as a deeper sense of meaning, and a greater feeling of belonging and satisfaction.

the importance of setting goals essay

17 Tools To Increase Motivation and Goal Achievement

These 17 Motivation & Goal Achievement Exercises [PDF] contain all you need to help others set meaningful goals, increase self-drive, and experience greater accomplishment and life satisfaction.

Created by Experts. 100% Science-based.

A goal properly set is halfway reached.
Everybody has their own Mount Everest they were put on this earth to climb.
You cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight.
It’s better to be at the bottom of the ladder you want to climb than at the top of the one you don’t.

Stephen Kellogg

If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much.
All who have accomplished great things have had a great aim, have fixed their gaze on a goal which was high, one which sometimes seemed impossible.

Orison Swett Marden

The greater danger for most of us isn’t that our aim is too high and miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.

Michelangelo

Give me a stock clerk with a goal and I’ll give you a man who will make history. Give me a man with no goals and I’ll give you a stock clerk.

J.C. Penney

Intention without action is an insult to those who expect the best from you.

Andy Andrews

This one step – choosing a goal and sticking to it – changes everything.

Setting goals can help us move forward in life. Goals give us a roadmap to follow. Goals are a great way to hold ourselves accountable, even if we fail. Setting goals and working to achieving them helps us define what we truly want in life.

Setting goals also helps us prioritize things. If we choose to simply wander through life, without a goal or a plan, that’s certainly our choice. However, setting goals can help us live the life we truly want to live.

Having said that, we don’t have to live every single moment of our lives planned out because we all need those days when we have nothing to accomplish.

However, those who have clearly defined goals might just enjoy their downtime even more than those who don’t set goals.

For more insightful reading, check out our selection of goal-setting books .

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Goal Achievement Exercises for free .

  • Elliot, A. J., & McGregor, H. A. (2001). A 2 x 2 achievement goal framework. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80 (3), 501-519.
  • Locke, E. A. (1968). Toward a theory of task motivation and incentives.  Organizational Behavior and Human Performance ,  3 (2), 157-189.
  • Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (1991). A theory of goal setting & task performance. The Academy of Management Review, 16 (2), 212-247.
  • Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (2002). Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation. American Psychologist, 57 (9), 705-717.
  • Lunenburg, F. C. (2011). Goal-setting theory of motivation. International Journal of Management, Business, and Administration, 15 (1), 1-6.
  • Moeller, A. J., Theiler, J. M., & Wu, C. (2012). Goal setting and student achievement: A longitudinal study. The Modern Language Journal, 96 (2), 153-169.
  • Murphy, M. (2010). HARD goals: The secret to getting from where you are to where you want to be. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
  • Weinberger, M. I., Mateo, C., & Sirey, J. A. (2009). Perceived barriers to mental health care and goal setting among depressed, community-dwelling older adults. Patient Preference and Adherence, 3 , 145-149.

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the importance of setting goals essay

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Motivation can be found when believing James Cash Penney’s wise words of “growth is never by mere chance; it is the result of forces working together” (Penney). I have been taught that putting in work during school activities and classes determines whether or not you would be well situated for college. There were times where I procrastinated in much of my work, but I still thought about my priorities and what was necessary to graduate. Throughout my junior year, I began to realize that nothing is truly handed to you, and you must work hard in order to achieve what it is that you want to succeed. Within my junior, I lost motivation in schoolwork to later gain it back, my social environment was changing, and I began to broaden my comfort zone.

The Value Of Effective Goals

To begin, goal setting has always been a priority in my life, and I couldn’t agree more with Sanger-Harris that the characteristics of effective goals are through using SMART goals. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-bound; these goals are not only beneficial to an individual, but incorporating them in the workplace has an even greater impact. A SMART goal I have been working toward is graduating college. This goal of mine is no doubt a SMART goal, and I look forward to the day it is achieved. Along with this treasured goal, my work sets goals for the employees to reach for, and the opportunity to achieve goals as a team is very motivating in my opinion. In fact, my coworkers and I just received a cash bonus for meeting our sales goals for the entire month of July!

Setting and Achieving Goals Essay

A person needs to achieve certain goals in one's life before you can call them successful. Success is to achieve goals, you have set. I have set certain goals I would like to achieve in my lifetime. Some of these goals are personal while others are professional. My professional goals in life are to find a good job that makes me happy, get a good education, find a job that makes enough money for me to support my family, and help people. Goals it is very important for me to receive a good education. Most job fields require a descent education. If I don't have an education I would not be able to function properly at the work place and I would not understand what to do. To maintain a good job that will make good money will require me to go

My Personal Life Goals

Have you ever woken up one morning and asked yourself, “What am I doing with my life?” This happened to me one day, and I quickly realized I have lost sight of my goals. Goals help you set a road map for your life, to accomplish things that are special to you and will help you move through life. They can be as simple as: wanting to improve your car, maintaining a healthy lifestyle, or on the long term end: wanting to graduate college with a degree in accounting.

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Student Essays

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Essay on Goal Setting | Value & Importance of Goal Setting

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Goals are the great way and a mean towards achieving anything in life. In our life we are surrounded by commitments, goals and well planned agendas. The Goal setting is quite critical for the success in our academic life, in career orientation and success in business as well as in  personal life. The following essay on Goal setting helps you understand the meaning and importance of Goal Setting and further how it’s important in Life.

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Essay on Goal Setting | Value & Importance of having a Great Goal in Life

Goal setting is the process of outlining priorities in life by a student. Goal setting is important because it allows students to focus on what is important and helps them stay organized. Goal setting can be defined as the process of setting priorities and determining the steps needed to achieve a desired outcome. This is an important skill for students to develop, as it allows them to focus on what is important and helps them stay organized. By setting goals, students can better manage their time and resources, and achieve success in their academic pursuits.

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Importance of Goal Setting

Goal setting is important because it allows students to focus on what is important and helps them stay organized. By setting goals, students can better manage their time and resources, and achieve success in their academic pursuits.

There are several reasons why goal setting is important for students. First, by setting goals, students can prioritize what is important to them and better manage their time. Second, goal setting helps students stay focused and motivated to achieve their goals. Finally, by setting goals, students can measure their progress and see how far they have come.

Goal setting is a important tool for success because it allows individuals to focus on what is important, better manages time, and provides motivation. When used correctly, goal setting can be the difference between success and failure.

There are many different ways that students can set goals. One way is to make a list of things that the student wants to achieve during the school year. This could include getting good grades, participating in extracurricular activities, or spending time with family and friends. Another way to set goals is by making a list of things that the student wants to improve on. This could include studying more, being more organized, or being more active in class.

Causes why Students Fail in Goal Setting 

Failure is the part of life. It happens sometimes we are unable to achieve the goals that we have planned in life. It happens because of a host of factors. Primarily, It can be because the goal was unrealistic to start with, or because of a lack of planning and execution on our part. It can also be due to outside factors such as difficult circumstances or limited resources. Finally, it could be that we simply gave up too soon. Whatever the cause may be, it is important to learn from our failures and move on.

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No matter how students set their goals, it’s important for them to stay focused on what they want to achieve. Goal setting is a important tool for success because it allows individuals to focus on what is important, better manages time, and provides motivation. When used correctly, goal setting can be the difference between success and failure.

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Rafal Reyzer

How To Write A Powerful Essay On Achieving Goals (+ Example)

Author: Rafal Reyzer

Writing an essay on achieving your goals can be a great opportunity to share your accomplishments.

Goal setting is a useful strategy to get the most out of life and set yourself up for success. However, there are many things to remember regarding proper goal setting and achievement. When writing a blm argumentative essay , it’s important to provide context on the history of the Black Lives Matter movement and the issues it seeks to address. This can help the reader understand the significance of the essay’s thesis and arguments. Let’s get to grips with the process of goal setting and come up with a powerful essay on achieving goals.

Structuring Your Essay on Achieving Goals:

How to write an introduction.

Any academic essay must have a strong beginning. It will establish your point of view and inform the reader of what to expect. An introduction should:

  • Attract the reader’s attention with a ‘hook’. You can achieve this by quoting a shocking statistic, quote, fact, or controversial statement.
  • Give some background or historical information about the topic. For instance, psychological theories and models on effective goal setting and achievement.
  • Present your thesis (main point of your essay) e.g., “Rewarding achievement is the most effective means by which employers can increase workplace productivity”.

How to Write The Main Body of Your Essay

There should be a minimum of three paragraphs in your essay. Each one is a ‘mini-essay with an introduction, body, and conclusion. Each should include:

  • Topic sentence: inform the reader about the subject of the paragraph, e.g., “how to measure goal attainment”, or “effective workplace goal setting”.
  • Evidence sentences: inform the reader about the evidence you’ve uncovered, e.g., a business model and study on effective workplace goal setting.
  • Analysis sentences : inform the reader of your thoughts on the evidence and its significance. For example, “Model A clearly shows how employers are to set realistic goals with employees and this model has proven to be successful in study x”.
  • Concluding sentence: summarize what you’ve learned about the topic and how it relates to the essay question. For instance, “Setting realistic goals for employees is straightforward and likely to increase successful goal achievement in the workplace”.

How to Write a Conclusion

  • To signal the essay is ending, use a suitable word or phrase , such as ‘In summary’ or ‘With all of this in mind’.
  • Reread your introduction to remind yourself of your thesis. After that, either paraphrase or respond to the thesis.
  • Summarize the key points stated in each of the assignment’s paragraphs. So, if you wrote three key body paragraphs, the conclusion should include three main themes.
  • Give your readers a concluding line on the main issue and possibly attempt to urge them to further ponder the topic in its wider context.

happy successful goal achieving winner

Example Of An Essay About Achieving Your Goals

So, let’s put all this information together and check an example essay on achieving goals: Effective Methods to Increase the Likelihood of Goal Achievement Achieving goals can be extremely rewarding and result in a more satisfying and successful life. Many people set goals yet cannot achieve them. However, there are ways to avoid or reduce the likelihood of missing the mark. By ensuring that goals are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound), using visualization techniques, and rewarding goal attainment, the chances of success increase. First, ensure your goals are SMART. This means that goals should be specific and measurable in terms of outcomes, e.g., test scores . Goals should be achievable and realistic to the person’s capabilities and resources available. Also, a goal should apply to the person’s work, education, hobbies, or interests and include a deadline. If there is no specificity of outcome, there’s no real way to see how someone has improved—or how they might be falling short. And if goals are not SMART, they are more difficult to achieve. Second, by imagining and visualizing the feelings and outcomes of achievement of the goal , the likelihood of high achievement increases. The imagination can be a powerful tool. Imagining the feelings of accomplishment helps to increase self-efficacy and motivation. A Canadian study found that imagery skills moderate the effect of mental practice on self-efficacy. The effects of visualization techniques are valuable in goal achievement. Third, once the goal has been accomplished, a reward is required. Getting a reward for hard work will increasingly motivate an individual to set and achieve the next goal. The offer of a reward gives employees and students an extra boost of motivation. Rewards help the cycle of goal setting and goal achieving to continue. In summary, by ensuring the goals set are SMART, visualizing and rewarding success, goal achievement becomes more likely. Achieving goals is a cyclic process that’s possible to master if the right method is in place.

The Basics of Setting and Achieving Goals

Getting things done is often more difficult than you may think. You may have a strong desire to see positive changes, including better grades, weight loss, or passing an educational course. But success requires more than just motivation. The right goal-achievement skill set can help you see the exact steps you need to perform to take your life to the next level. Of course, it all starts with setting a goal and there’s a useful (SMART) acronym to remember:

Goals should be specific and free of generalizations, or they are unlikely to get done. Instead of stating that your goal is to improve your English skills, make it more specific by stating that your goal is to learn and use one new word every weekday to boost your English vocabulary.

A goal should be measurable because you need to keep your finger on the pulse and know where you’re at. For instance, a test or assessment score can provide evidence that you have reached your goal.

A goal needs to be possible to achieved. If it’s beyond your capabilities or requires resources you cannot access, then you will set yourself up for failure.

Goals must have some relevance. It is pointless to set a goal if it’s not relevant to your life, work, education, interests, hobbies, etc.

You must set a completion date for your goal. If you do not set a deadline, you may lack the motivation to reach it. Once you have your SMART goal, record it clearly on paper or a mobile device and then visualize the outcome of achieving that goal. Imagine how happy you will feel when you achieve it. This vivid mental imagery will provide you with the extra motivation to go for it. Finally, when you reach your goal, it’s time to celebrate! Reward yourself with a trip, an item you desire, relaxation time with friends, or whatever else that will make you feel happy.

Ready to write an essay about achieving goals?

Hopefully, the information in the article has given you the basics to help you write a powerful essay on achieving goals. I also hope that this article has helped you think about how you can work toward achieving your own goals. There are many great books about the science of goal achievement. I especially recommend ones written by Brian Tracy , as they have helped me a great deal in my pursuit of happiness . You can also create an engaging presentation about achieving goals and objectives using this  goal presentation template . Next up, you may want to explore an ultimate guide to writing expository essays .

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Rafal Reyzer

Rafal Reyzer

Hey there, welcome to my blog! I'm a full-time entrepreneur building two companies, a digital marketer, and a content creator with 10+ years of experience. I started RafalReyzer.com to provide you with great tools and strategies you can use to become a proficient digital marketer and achieve freedom through online creativity. My site is a one-stop shop for digital marketers, and content enthusiasts who want to be independent, earn more money, and create beautiful things. Explore my journey here , and don't miss out on my AI Marketing Mastery online course.

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Why Goal Setting Is Important: How to Set Goals to Help You Succeed

Why Goal Setting Is Important: How to Set Goals to Help You Succeed

Goalswe all have them in one form or another. this is why the art of goal setting becomes an important skill to master..

Goals—we all have them in one form or another, though they can vary widely and wildly.

And while one person might be planning a trek up Everest and another may be planning to retire at forty, another’s goal might simply be getting out of bed that day. 

As human beings, we often set goals as a way of improving, or evolving: To lose weight, to get healthy, to improve our attachment styles in relationships, to focus more on our art, to get into law school, or to start a family. But while there is an abundance of goals one can hope to achieve, it often seems there are far more goals that go unfulfilled.

This is why the art of goal setting becomes an important skill to master.

If you work hard striving for goals and yet never seem to get very far, it’s possible that a little more groundwork could be the ticket. You may need to spend more time reflecting on what you truly want, and turning those clear wants into concrete, formal goals. 

While it’s most certainly true that the journey is the destination, our chances of ever reaching a destination—not to mention, getting the most out of a journey—depend heavily on our clarity of desire and intention. In other words, clear goal setting is a key part of getting done what we want to accomplish.

the importance of setting goals essay

What is goal setting?

Goal setting can be defined as the process in which you identify something you wish to achieve, and go about setting a timeframe in which to achieve it, complete with measurable objectives along the way. 

According to famed life coach To n y Robbins , learning to set goals in one area of your life makes it easier to do the same in other areas, and setting goals with milestones along the way which allow for small, progressive wins helps pave the way for larger achievements.

People across all backgrounds, experiences, and industries set goals in order to make progress towards them, in large part because goal setting helps us keep the long term big picture in mind while also motivating us in the short term. 

Ultimately, effective goal setting, proper time management and a well organized goal setting strategy is the key to progress and making the most of your life. By defining smart goals, not only will it help you understand the different types of goals and their relationship to one another, but it will set you up on a road to long-term success. 

What are the 3 types of goals?

Process goals.

Process goals, also known as procedural goals, are based on specific, measurable actions, such as aiming to work on your novel for one hour every morning, or doing yoga for 30 minutes a day. 

Setting a process goal means honing in on strategies related to what you want to achieve entirely within your control, and finding ways that will increase your chances of accomplishing what you set out to do. 

Particularly helpful for altering habits and behaviors, process goals often include clearly scheduled plans, such as exercising 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week, for a 1 month. As luck (or dedication) would have it, process goals also help pave the way for outcome goals.

Outcome goals

If process goals are the journey, outcome goals are the destination. 

Outcome goals are based on the precise end results you want to achieve. This could mean scoring a position you’ve been vying for, getting into the NHL, winning a grant, or building your own house. 

Outcome goals are challenging to control due to external influences. For instance, saying, “I will become an acupuncturist” tells you what result you’re looking for, but not how to get there. While you can study hard, you don’t grade your own exams. 

Ultimately, while we can take steps to influence the outcome in our favor, the final results are more or less beyond our control.

Performance goals

Performance goals are largely controllable, though not entirely, and they are based on your personal standards. Aiming to graduate at the top of your class is a good example of a performance goal.

Think of it this way: performance goals set the bar for our process goals. They’re results-focused. For example, while your process goal might be to jog an hour a day for 3 months, and your outcome goal might be to win a marathon, your performance goal might involve gradually improving your speed. 

Ultimately, the best way to attain an outcome goal is to align your performance goals with your process goals.

Why is goal setting Important? 

It’s actually relatively simple. If you want to accomplish personal goals, or improve, succeed, or even excel at something, goal setting practices are necessary. Without them, we lack direction and attention. 

  • Agency. Setting goals helps us grab the reins that steer our lives, while also providing a benchmark to evaluate whether or not our trajectory is well-aimed at success. 
  • Growth. Setting goals is also the most natural way in the world to set yourself up for personal growth and expansion, as goals and goal achievement push us out of our comfort zones, facilitating transformation in ways that previously may not have seemed possible. 
  • Fulfillment. For many, a feeling of fulfillment can only come with the sense that we’re working toward achieving some kind of success, whatever dreams you may have. In other words, progress and satisfaction are profoundly linked.

How to achieve your goals

It can be very helpful to begin the goal setting process by looking at your long term vision. By breaking down your lifetime goals into smaller goals, you can achieve goals over a progressive time frame: ten years, two years, one year, until you get to next month, next week, and finally, today. 

Once you’ve looked at the big picture and broken it down into numerous smaller pictures, you’re ready to start moving toward achieving them. This is the key to effective goal setting.

Let’s break down this important prep work, shall we?

Want to achieve? Here’s how to set goals

  • Brainstorm.  Take 5 or 10 minutes to brainstorm a list of any and all things you hope to do, create, achieve, have, or experience in the next 20 years (or however many years you want). Don’t hesitate—just write it all down, whether it seems realistic or not.
  • Organize.  Since deadlines are integral to setting goals, go through your list and next to each goal, indicate how many years (or months) it will take to achieve them.
  • Review.  Look through your list again, and select your top 4 goals. Try to pick some short and some longer term. Ideally, these are the goals which excite you. Then, write a blurb for each, detailing why you will definitely be achieving the goal within your scheduled time frame (i.e., what’s driving you to succeed?).
  • Assess. Look over your list again with fresh eyes and determine whether your goals are clearly defined, measurable, and realistic. Do they have a deadline built in? Most of us work best with a bit of pressure in the mix.

What are the 5 steps to goal setting?

1. set smart goals.

Harnessing the SMART framework as a 5-step strategy for setting personal goals with a clear purpose can be super helpful for setting you on the path to successful goal fulfillment! Here’s what SMART stands for:

Perhaps the most important thing is that your goal setting be clear and concrete. Avoid vagueness when setting goals because you’ll only end up lacking direction. Think of goals as lanterns, lighting up your path. The more precise and well-defined your goals are, the clearer your path to success will be.

Be sure to include precise dates, scores, amounts, etc., in your goals so you have a straightforward way of measuring your progress. If your goal is “To eat less sugar,” it will be difficult to determine at what point you’ve successfully achieved it. Instead, come up with tangibles so you can measure feedback, like “a 50% reduction in one year.” That way, you’ll have a much clearer idea when a celebration is in order!

While it’s important not to let others tell us what is and isn’t realistic when it comes to goal setting, it’s important to look inside yourself and determine whether it's actually possible to achieve the goals you set forth. If you set a goal you have no hope of achieving (i.e., switching careers to become a rocket scientist) you will end up discouraged. At the same time, try not to set goals that are too easy either. Individuals should have goals that occupy the sweet spot: realistic yet challenging. These are the types that push you to grow.

It may go without saying, but your goals should be relevant to whatever direction you want your life and/or career to take. Otherwise, why set goals? If your goals diverge with the trajectory you’re currently on, you may end up struggling to make time or stay focused. By keeping your goals aligned with your current path, you'll develop the self-discipline you need to fulfill your goals. All of that said, if your goal is to alter your current life path, and you’re motivated enough to follow through on the challenges, don’t let anyone else’s list of rules discourage you. 

Time-bound 

To get what you want to achieve, you have to give your goals a deadline, even if you’re not a deadlines person. Achieving goals is hard to do any other way. Goal setting theory tells us that deadlines give us a well-suited sense of urgency, remind us to celebrate victories (both big and small), and ultimately help us to achieve our goals with time to spare for other things.

2. Identify your greatest motivators.

Any goals you set for yourself should motivate you, and in order to motivate you, they need to mean something to you. If your goal doesn’t fully interest you, or in some way contradicts your bigger picture, then the chances that you’ll make it a reality are low. 

One of the best goal setting tips is that, wherever possible, you should set goals aligned with your highest priorities: your career, your couple goals , your family. Without high priority focus, you can end up with too many goals, scattered over different parts of your life. This can be overwhelming or frustrating and leave you with little time to spend on each. This in turn is demotivating. 

Focused motivation is the fuel you need to make it happen!

3. Write it down.

Taking the time to think about a goal thoroughly enough to put it in writing makes it real. You no longer risk letting it slip your mind. 

Use concrete language like “will” instead of “would like to” or “might.” For example, “I will become a personal trainer,” rather than “I would like to become a personal trainer.” The difference may seem negligible, but words have power, and can hold our passions if we use them right.

Once they’re down on paper, post your goals in visible places (like your fridge, or your bathroom mirror) to serve as daily reminders.

4. Create an action plan

Many of us skip the action plan step in the goal setting routine, but it’s crucial to achieve goals. We become overly focused on the outcome, to the detriment of the steps needed to get there! 

Write down every step you need to make, and enjoy crossing them off your list, one by one. This is especially important if your goal entails a long term commitment.

Goal setting is an ongoing commitment, not just a way of achieving results. Be sure to schedule regular reminders to keep yourself focused, and allot daily or weekly time slots to review and update your goals. 

While your end goal may stay the same in the long term, how you get there can change drastically. To stay committed to your outcome, check in with yourself regularly to make sure your goals are still relevant, valuable, and necessary to your life. You should still feel excited about them.

Why we sometimes fail to achieve our goals

Arguably, coming up with goals is easy when compared with all the work that goes into outlining its specifics, coming up with an action plan, and following through with them despite the obstacles that are sure to crop up along the way. 

You don’t need to look far to see there are many reasons we fail to fulfill our goals and all the dreams that accompany them. Here are some of the reasons why we fail to achieve our goals, and how to avoid falling into the usual traps:

  • We’re too focused on the effort it takes. Keep your eye on the prize, even through all the hard work.
  • Our goals are vague or unattainable. Be concrete, define everything with clarity and focus.
  • There are too many pots on the stove. Avoid setting goals which are scattered, especially ones that conflict with each other.
  • We plan poorly. Consider all your responsibilities and measure them against your goals: i.e., don’t aim to win a tennis championship the same year you plan to have a baby.
  • We lose sight of our motivators. Don’t lose sight of why you’re striving for something in the first place: that’s your bread and butter, right there.
  • We make excuses. Although sometimes life does get in the way, it’s important to listen to the excuses we make and judge whether we ourselves actually do believe them. 
  • We don’t expect any obstacles. Planning for potential obstacles is arguably just as important as planning our goals out—it’s also a good way to avoid being taken off guard and having your whole process derailed.
  • We fail to set deadlines. Sometimes, the best lifeline is a deadline! In other words, to have the right time management, you need a barometer by setting deadlines. Even if they may seem arbitrary, they can actually act as self-fulfilling prophecies. 
  • We pay attention to naysayers. There will always be haters and naysayers out there in life who discourage you or plant seeds of doubt—ignore them, because they’re often a sign that you’re doing things right.  
  • We’re afraid of failure. Fear of failure, often rooted in perfectionism, can seriously hold us back, yet without risk, we achieve nothing. Overcome this and avoid sabotaging your goals!
  • We procrastinate with the best of them. Of all the reasons we fail to achieve our goals, procrastination is the most widespread. According to the Harvard Business Review, one of the best ways to beat procrastination is by committing publicly , or telling as many people you can about your goal so you have people to hold you to task.

The good news is, the main reason people fail has to do with how they set their goals. And this, as we’ve seen, is something that can be corrected. 

The other good news: if you’re not failing at something, you’re not doing much. Even if you don’t achieve a specific goal, chances are you’ve made a good deal of progress. 

The real question is, what will you do with your failures— and your successes? When you fail, you’re always free to go back and reevaluate your process to gain insight about what you might have done differently, and when. 

Analyzing our failures help us alter our strategies and tackle our goals from fresh new angles. After all, even if the results you want are highly specific, there may actually be numerous different ways and systems you can use to reach your final destination. Once you determine what it is that caused you to fail, you can choose to learn from it (we should all do the same with our successes, truth be told). 

Every single time we set a goal, we have the opportunity to learn something new.

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Essays About Goals: Top 5 Examples Plus 10 Prompts

Goals could be a one-time event or a lifelong growth process. Write effectively with the help of our essays about goals and writing prompts in our guide. 

Having goals helps us have a sense of purpose. We find our determination, discipline, and strategic thinking tested to their limits. The road toward any goal, especially ambitious ones, is full of thorns and spikes. Some walk away and accept that these goals are not destined for them. Some, however, keep pressing forward, determined to achieve these goals. Gaining confidence in writing can help you achieve your goals by putting pen to paper and starting a plan.

5 Essay Examples

1.  are you goal or growth conscious by katherine beneby, 2. how to help an employee figure out their career goals by dorie clark, 3. no goals: why is it so hard to do something for enjoyment’s sake by jenny valentish, 4. get inspired: how four hikers accomplished their 2021 hiking goals by anna roth , 5. does sharing your goals on social media make you more likely to achieve them by kristan russell, 1. my goals in life, 2. travel goals, 3. the goal of forming better study habits, 4. climate goals: are we progressing, 5. importance of fitness goals, 6. fiscal policy goals, 7. failing at your goals, 8. setting lofty vs. light goals, 9. poverty reduction goals, 10. my academic goals.

“The difference between goals and growth is that goals are seasonal, while growth is lifelong. Goals focus on a destination while growth focuses on a journey.”

In this essay, the writer discusses how achieving our goals may be possible if we reframe our minds to think of them as a growth process. This essay enumerates the difficulties of achieving our objectives and offers guidance on what will help put structure in how we formulate our growth plans. You might also be interested in these essays about bad habits .

“It’s not always possible to help the people we supervise identify and work toward their career goals… [S]o when we can assist our employees in getting there, it’s a meaningful way we can make a difference in their lives and their professional success.”

As per our list of topics to write about , this essay looks at how managers must realize their critical roles in the lives of the employees they handle. Their biggest contribution to the development of their employees is helping them achieve their tasks at work while ensuring these victories lead to their broader career goals. You might also be wondering, why write goals down?

“Once, to stave off depression, I set myself the goal-tastic mission of doing something new every day for a year – from flying in a glider to blowing things up – and blogging about it. Right from day one, the sense of focus lifted my mood, and there was frankly no time to overthink.”

In this essay, the writer looks at how atelic activities, or those we do for fun, positively influence our outlook. Our goal-driven world, however, hinders us from seeing the pure joy of doing things without goals. You might be interested in these essays about dream jobs .

“Last year, she set a goal to simply go hiking at all. And she’s thrilled to have made it happen, saying it was one of the best things she could have done for herself and her family during such a challenging year.”

This writer describes points to inspire people to start hiking and to set personal fitness goals. Look no further and turn to the inspiring stories of people who have targeted to hike across states, hike for the first time, hike once a month for health purposes, and hike a hundred miles yearly. For more inspiration, check out these essays about achievement .

“Wellness gurus and fitness bloggers seem to be divided between whether sharing goals on your social media sabotages you or holds you accountable.“

This essay revolves around a nascent study that aims to see if sharing your goals on social media make them more attainable. While initial results show that those who posted made significant progress compared to people who did not post, more questions need to be explored. You might be inspired by these essays about success .

10 Prompts on Essays About Goals

In this essay, delve into your short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals. Before anything else, elaborate on what drew you to set these goals. Then, share your action plans to make them a reality. Discuss the obstacles you’ve faced and how you’ve conquered them. 

Travel goals

What is the one destination you dream of? For this essay, daydream about your travel goals. Direct that excitement and write your travel itinerary, the duration of your stay, where you will be staying, and what daring activities you will dare yourself to plunge into. You can also talk about whom you would like to be with when you fulfill your travel goals or if you prefer going solo.

It is a challenge to hit the books when we live in a world with unlimited distractions. In this topic prompt, share effective study habits to help students focus on their studies. One helpful tip, for example, is designing your environment to be conducive to a habit change. In the case of study habits, this means temporarily eliminating access to social media and other digital distractions. Cite more tips and conclude your essay with a few words of motivation.

Under the Paris Agreement , the landmark international agreement to fight climate change, countries must jointly strive to arrest global warming and cap it to 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2030. The question is: is this goal still on the table? Read recent news articles on how countries are following through on their Paris Treaty pledges. Listen to what environmentalists say about national efforts and tackle what more must be done to attain the climate goals. 

Fitness is a common new year’s resolution but try convincing your readers to start their fitness goals today. First, help your readers explore the right dietary program and workout schedule based on their daily demands. 

Then, underscore the importance of a fitness goal for gaining self-esteem and improving physical and mental health. Entice them with the idea of gaining a new exciting skill from a new workout activity and motivate them to start unlocking the fit version of themselves today. 

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, several countries recorded ballooning debts as governments spent heavily to fight the pandemic and also support struggling sectors. So first, determine whether your country is in a tight fiscal space. 

The fiscal space assessment framework created by the International Monetary Fund may help you identify the metrics and data to gather. Then, shed light on your government’s fiscal policy goals to address debt while spending in sectors that guarantee an economy’s long-term health, such as education and social services. 

How do people receive failures? Write about people’s attitudes and actions when they fail at their goals. Can people develop depression, and how can they recover from the fall? Try to answer these and share your experience of failing at your goals. 

Ask yourself: How did you move forward after that? Then, share your opinions on whether a failure signifies that it would be best for someone to find a new goal altogether or try again with stronger determination and a better-calculated strategy. 

Which is better: aiming for a lofty goal that opens risks of failure, which many fear, or light goals that might do little in stretching out your potential? Answer this by listing the pros and cons of each. Then help readers strike the optimum balance between a loft or light goal. Cite examples of lofty and light goals to help your readers better differentiate the two.

For this essay, take a deep dive into the poverty reduction efforts of your government. First, give an overview of an ongoing flagship poverty reduction program and uncover its outcomes since its implementation. Read through government reports about the breakthrough goals of the program and which ones are gaining momentum. 

Then, look at the other side of the fence by listening to what critics say about the program. Take note of their laments about bottlenecks in the program and what more can be done to attain poverty reduction goals swiftly. 

My academic goals

Start with a descriptive paragraph detailing your academic goals. Writing about it vividly, as though it is the reality, is a creative way to show readers how much you have played out the scenarios of success in your head while helping your readers fully understand your goals. Then snap back to reality and discuss your action plan to realize these goals.

For related topics, you may check our essays about dreams in life . Don’t forget to proofread your essay with the best grammar checkers .

the importance of setting goals essay

Yna Lim is a communications specialist currently focused on policy advocacy. In her eight years of writing, she has been exposed to a variety of topics, including cryptocurrency, web hosting, agriculture, marketing, intellectual property, data privacy and international trade. A former journalist in one of the top business papers in the Philippines, Yna is currently pursuing her master's degree in economics and business.

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Setting Goals & Staying Motivated 

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This vidcast talks about how to set goals and how to maintain motivation for long writing tasks. When setting goals for a writing project, it is important to think about goals for the entire project and also goals for specific writing times. These latter goals should be specific, measurable, and manageable within the time allotted for writing. The section on motivation shares ideas for boosting motivation over the course of a long writing project. The handouts on goal-setting and staying productive, as well as the scholarly writing inventory, complement the material in this vidcast and should be used in conjunction with it. 

Note: Closed-captioning and a full  transcript  are available for this vidcast. 

Handouts 

Goal-Setting for your Personal Intensive Writing Experience (IWE) | [PDF]

This handout guides writers through the important process of goal-setting for the personal Intensive Writing Experience. Specifically, it talks about how to (1) formulate specific, measurable, and reasonable writing goals, (2) set an overall IWE goal, (3) break up the overall goal into smaller, daily goals, and (4) break up daily goals into smaller goals for individual writing sessions. Writers are prompted to clear their head of distracting thoughts before each writing session and, after each session, to debrief on their progress and recalibrate goals as needed. 

Scholarly Writing Inventory (PDF) 

This questionnaire helps writers identify and inventory their personal strengths and weaknesses as scholarly writers. Specifically, writers are prompted to answer questions pertaining to (1) the emotional/psychological aspects of writing, (2) writing routines, (3) research, (4) organization, (5) citation, (6) mechanics, (7) social support, and (8) access to help. By completing this questionnaire, scholarly writers will find themselves in a better position to build upon their strengths and address their weaknesses. 

Stay ing Productive for Long Writing Tasks (PDF)

This resource offers some practical tips and tools to assist writers in staying productive for extended periods of time in the face of common challenges like procrastination. It discusses how the process of writing is more than putting words on a page and offers suggestions for addressing negative emotions towards writing, such as anxiety. The handout also lays out helpful methods for staying productive for long writing tasks: (1) time-based methods, (2) social-based methods, (3) output-based methods, (4) reward-based methods, and (5) mixed methods. 

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Essay on Goals in Life

Students are often asked to write an essay on Goals in Life in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Goals in Life

Introduction.

Goals in life are like a compass, guiding us towards our desired destination. They provide a sense of direction and purpose, helping us focus and organize our efforts efficiently.

Importance of Goals

Goals are important as they motivate us to strive for success. They make us resilient, enabling us to overcome obstacles and challenges that may come our way.

Types of Goals

Goals can be short-term or long-term. Short-term goals are achievable quickly, while long-term goals require time and persistent effort.

In conclusion, setting goals is essential for personal growth and success. Always remember, a goal without a plan is just a wish.

250 Words Essay on Goals in Life

Life is a journey filled with opportunities and challenges. Goals, acting as navigational tools, direct our path through this journey, providing focus, motivation, and a sense of purpose. They are the stepping stones to achieving our ambitions, and they shape our personal, academic, and professional lives.

The Importance of Setting Goals

Setting goals is integral to our growth and progress. They serve as a blueprint for our future, guiding our actions and decisions. Goals foster resilience, as they urge us to persevere despite setbacks. They also encourage self-development, pushing us to acquire new skills and knowledge.

Goals can be broadly classified into short-term and long-term goals. Short-term goals act as immediate milestones, while long-term goals shape our vision for the future. Balancing both is crucial, as short-term goals often pave the way to long-term accomplishments.

Goal Setting and Achievement

Effective goal setting requires specificity, measurability, attainability, relevance, and timeliness (SMART). This approach ensures our goals are realistic and achievable. Moreover, consistent evaluation and adjustment of our goals is essential, as it allows us to stay aligned with our evolving aspirations and circumstances.

In conclusion, goals are fundamental to our life’s journey. They provide direction, foster resilience, and encourage personal growth. Balancing short-term and long-term goals, along with effective goal-setting strategies, can lead us to success. Ultimately, it is through setting and achieving our goals that we write our own life story.

500 Words Essay on Goals in Life

Goals are the compass that guides us through life, providing direction and purpose. They are the stepping stones towards achieving our ultimate dreams and aspirations. Goals, whether personal, professional, or academic, are significant as they shape our lives, fuel our ambition, and give us a sense of accomplishment.

Setting goals is a fundamental component to long-term success. The basic reason for this is the ability of goals to create a bridge between our present and our desired future. They serve as motivators, pushing us to step out of our comfort zones, face challenges, and strive for improvement. Goals act as a roadmap, providing clarity and focus, enabling us to make informed decisions and avoid distractions.

Goals also foster resilience, as they often require sustained effort and dedication. They teach us the value of perseverance, as the journey towards achieving them is usually filled with obstacles and setbacks. However, these challenges serve to strengthen us, enhancing our problem-solving skills and fostering personal growth.

Goals can be broadly categorized into short-term and long-term goals. Short-term goals are immediate objectives that can be achieved within a relatively short timeframe. These could range from completing a project, passing an exam, or learning a new skill.

Long-term goals, on the other hand, are more extensive and require a significant amount of time and effort. Examples include obtaining a degree, launching a successful career, or buying a house. Short-term goals often serve as stepping stones towards the achievement of long-term goals.

Goal Setting Strategies

Effective goal setting requires thought and planning. One popular method is the SMART framework, which stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. This approach encourages us to set goals that are clear and precise, have a defined timeline, are realistically attainable, and align with our broader life objectives.

Another crucial aspect of goal setting is maintaining flexibility. Life is unpredictable, and circumstances can change unexpectedly. Therefore, it’s essential to be adaptable and open to modifying our goals as needed.

In conclusion, goals are integral to our lives. They provide us with a sense of direction, motivate us to strive for improvement, and offer a sense of accomplishment when achieved. Whether they are short-term or long-term, personal or professional, goals give our lives purpose and meaning. Therefore, the process of setting and achieving goals is a lifelong journey that leads to personal growth and fulfillment.

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Importance of Setting Goals and Strategic Planning In an Organization Argumentative Essay

Introduction, importance of goal setting and strategic planning to productivity, reference list.

With the ever-increasing competition and changing business environments, proper planning and setting of achievable strategic goals have become an integral part of all organizations, as they are two of the primary determinants of an organization’s level of productivity.

In addition, these factors are also important when it comes to defining an organization’s purpose and business direction that meant to ensure that an organization improves its profit and expands its market segment.

Although sometimes because of the ever-changing economic conditions it may be very hard to predict any changes that are likely to occur in the course of business, it is important for managers to be always prepared to challenge the status quo and put in place necessary systems to facilitate the delivery of desired outcomes.

On the other hand, it is crucial for managers to formulate plans and set goals that are not only executable, but also viable, as this is one of the primary ways of ensuring an organizations business operations are connected and aligned.

Therefore, in any organizational setting proper strategic planning and setting desirable goals are the two primary factors that determine a health care management organization level of goal attainment.

Regardless of any prevailing business condition, every organization has the capacity to perform and achieve its strategic goals, so long as such an organization aligns its strategic goals with its activities.

Therefore goal setting should be one of the primary activities that an organization should do with uttermost care. Goal setting can help to define the parameters that an organization should put in place to achieve an end goal.

Without goals, it is very hard for a team to formulate other plans or to seek any financial aid, as this will be seen of lack of direction. Setting of goals can also act as a motivating factor towards achieving an end goal, because different have set targets, which they must achieve; hence, to avoid being defeated by other teams, they will always remain motivated towards achieving their goals.

Further, goals give teams something to look forward to, as goals are aims that must be achieved, regardless of the prevailing conditions and challenges. Most teams with set goals have a tendency to utilize their time productively; because they know any failure to achieve such goals will not only be a failure in their part, but also to an organization that they pledged to help achieve its mandate (Lawhorne, 2008, p.1).

In addition to setting of achievable goals, strategic planning is another important strategy of increasing the level and quality of work output. With the ever-increasing scarcity of resources and competition in most business scenarios, it is important for an organization to formulate appropriate strategic plans, as they are the first step in any goal setting endeavor aimed at increasing productivity.

Productivity improvement is a crucial part of strategic planning, as this one of the primary gateways to increased profits and meeting of scheduled targets.

Strategic planning is primarily concerned with an organization’s long term goals and the ability of an organization to utilize the available resources to maximize production. Therefore, strategic planning aids in the development of better managerial and working decisions that are coupled with increased energy and capacity to improve customer satisfaction.

Moreover, strategic planning will give an organization some competitive advantage over other organizations, as it provides an organization with better solutions to any emerging business and operational challenges (Lawlor, 2006, pp. 1-2 and Kerzner & Rea, 1997, pp. 264-265).

In conclusion, regardless of the prevailing economic condition, the level of productivity of any healthcare organization will primarily be determined by two primary factors in an organization; these are setting of appropriate goals and formulating appropriate strategic plans.

Through doing this, an organization is guaranteed to achieve its set targets, deal with emerging challenges, optimize resource allocation, and maximize its success chances.

Kerzner, H. & Rea, P. J. (1997). Strategic planning: a practical guide . New York: John Wiley and Sons. Web.

Lawhorne, P. (2008). The importance of setting goals. Divine Caroline. Web.

Lawlor, J. F. (2006). The importance of strategic planning . Web.

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The Importance of Setting Goals

As you spend more time in the professional world, you may start to think more about where you are and where you want to be. Do you aspire to be an executive one day, or be in a position that allows you to work remotely from anywhere in the world? Are you happy in your current line of work, or is there something else you’d like to be doing? To answer these questions, and make your dreams a reality, you’ll need to set goals, and then focus on achieving them. Setting and achieving goals can help in many areas of your life. Here are a few reasons why setting goals — and achieving them — is so important.   Spark Motivation Going to work and doing the same thing repeatedly becomes not only routine, but also a bit boring. To keep things interesting, create goals for yourself. Some goals might be task-oriented, such as responding to all morning emails before lunch. Others could be developmental, like learning a new software program over the next three months. As you achieve each goal, you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment and be motivated to set and achieve more goals. Ultimately, you’ll learn to set larger, long-term professional goals over the course of your career.   Promote Accountability Without setting goals, it’s easy to fall into the trap of doing the bare minimum. Instead, take your professional life into your own hands and forge a path that keeps you challenged and fulfilled. Document your goals. Write them down and keep them in your workspace. Whether you choose to record them digitally or in a notebook, having them accessible allows you to reference them frequently. Visual reminders can help keep you on track to achieving your goals.    Help Find Clarity Setting goals can help you clarify what you really want in your professional life. They can also help you see where you want to focus your energy. Are you eager to pursue something in your current career field, or will your goal lead you to another professional path? Goals are so important because they help you better understand your priorities and help you discover what you really value in life.   Change Behavior Modifying habits is not something that typically happens overnight. It takes time and effort. By setting goals that require you to do something differently to accomplish them, you’ll lay the foundation to create different behaviors. The hope is that these new behaviors will result in a more positive and productive you, and ensure that you’re bringing your best self to work every day.   Permission to Fail Fail is probably too harsh a word to use. But the truth is, we can’t always accomplish every goal we set for ourselves. The reasons why we don’t achieve a goal are endless. But not meeting a goal provides an opportunity to reassess what you did or didn’t do, what you can do differently, and even whether the goal is truly attainable. While it can be hard to remember in the moment, it’s just as important to understand and experience failure as it is to experience success. Don’t beat yourself up if you don’t meet a goal. Instead, use it as a learning opportunity to find success in the future.   The professional world affords a multitude of opportunities for setting goals. Doing so can help keep you motivated, improve behavior, and provide a sense of accomplishment. Not achieving your goals, though, can also provide you with valuable lessons. Whether your goals are small and for the short-term or bigger and long-term, the importance of setting goals can’t be denied. Don’t wait — establish your goals today.

Workplace Wellness

The start of a new year often brings a renewed motivation to improve in many aspects of life, including your time at work. Executive Coach Natalia Autenrieth shares some ideas on how to make your office life more healthy.

I would argue that for many people, the answer is "At work!" That may sound unconventional, as after all, we do not associate rows of cubicles and fluorescent lights with health. However, the choices we make at the office have a direct impact on health and well-being. We spend nearly 1,800 hours at work over the course of the year, so even our smallest choices can have a lasting impact.

Busy professionals have plenty on their minds, from the latest fire-drill deadline to managing relationships and juggling multiple responsibilities. Healthy habits are unlikely to stick if they are complicated or difficult to maintain. My recommendation is to choose one new healthy choice that would be easiest to try, then add another — spacing them out so that you are never overwhelmed. Here are some workplace wellness ideas to consider.

Know your options Companies big and small are making an investment in the well-being of their employees. As a result, on-site gym facilities and healthy food choices aren't just for the likes of Google! Begin by learning more about the workplace wellness perks and benefits available through your employer: you might be surprised to find on-site chiropractic service, weight management support and discounts on fitness club memberships. Once you understand your options, use them — after all, they are a part of your overall compensation package.

Resolve to move throughout the day Human bodies are not made to sit at a desk for eight hours at a time! By building more movement into your day, you will find a new source of productivity (and your back will thank you, too.) Your changes on this front need not be dramatic: take the stairs, go for a walk at lunch, or choose the bathroom that is farther away from your office.

Drink water No, the water that is filtered through the coffee grounds does not count! Multiple studies have shown that 75 percent of Americans are chronically dehydrated. Are you one of them? Here is a simple test: if you are thirsty, you are already dehydrated. As a result, you might find yourself foggy, more irritable, less able to concentrate, and more anxious — a terrible set of ingredients that can derail your workday. If drinking plain water sounds boring, invest in an infusion bottle and some fruit and herbs to make it more interesting. Health apps like FitBit and Hydro Coach can be effective, although non-tech solutions like crossing glasses of water off a checklist work too. Use whatever tools you like, and get that water in!

Bring your own lunch and healthy snacks Oh, the dreaded Cubicle Diet: doughnuts from the morning meeting, pizza for lunch, and candy from the vending machine to ward off the afternoon slump. If you are tired of the vicious cycle of office food, consider that bringing in your own lunch and snacks is the best way to control what goes into your body. Home-cooked lunch does not have to feel like a downgrade: bring foods and healthy snacks for work that you genuinely enjoy, mix it up, and enjoy the resulting savings and greater energy levels.

Consider a standing desk If back pain plagues your days, sitting at a desk may not be for you. Early research has shown that standing desks can alleviate upper back and neck troubles. If you are skeptical of trying a standing desk, consider one of the convertible kits that allow you the flexibility of sitting or standing. Standing desks are a relatively recent introduction to the office, but studies are showing their potential at improving energy levels and productivity, along with weight loss and lower blood pressure.

Keep your space clean How well do you know your office? Consider this survey from WebMD: the number one dirtiest place on the office is the handles on the faucet in the break room, followed by the door of the microwave. A study from the University of Arizona also found that an average desktop has more germs than a toilet seat.

Under normal circumstances, your immune system should be able to handle most of those threats without skipping a beat. However, stress and fatigue can sabotage your natural defense system. What can you do to protect yourself? As simple as it sounds, wash your hands. You might also wipe down your desk and keyboard, dust the bookshelves, and put away old paperwork. This does not have to take long if you simply take five minutes at the end of the day to tidy up.

Take sanity breaks Most professionals take sanity breaks throughout the day without prompting. The problem is that those breaks aren't always effective. While a scroll through the Facebook or Instagram feed can feel like a welcome change of pace, it does not get you away from your monitor — so as far as your eyes and your body are concerned, you did not take a break at all!

Improve your workplace wellness by getting up from your desk, walking over to the water cooler to refill your bottle, or even doing a quick stretching routine. Those of us who need reminders about breaks might try the Pomodoro technique: intense bursts of 25 minutes of focused work, followed by a short break.

Making your office life healthier, one choice at a time Beyond bringing healthy snacks for work, making healthier eating choices overall, and taking walking breaks to move around, it is important to be aware of your stress levels. Take those vacation days, and make sure you really recharge on your days off. While it can be tempting to blame our busy schedules for the lack of focus on health, they are not an excuse. Even the busiest professionals can make small workplace wellness changes that will make their time at the office more productive and their lives healthier and happier.

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Latest articles, juggling academics and hobbies, how to highlight your value, rounding out your academic resume, you may be interested, improving your workplace communication , how to pay for college, how to be proactive on your educational journey.

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The importance of setting goals

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The importance of setting goals

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Student’s Name Professor’s Name Course Number Date Since when I was young, I have been taught the value of goal setting and I have developed a habit of setting both short-term and long-term goals. The short-term goals are objectively aimed at facilitating my long goals. I can classify the goals into two categories, first are the personal growth goals and the second is the professional growth goals. I have set my long-term goal to be a professional chief engineer at Tesla motor company. By achieving the little short-term goals on my personal development and academics, both my actions and attitudes are synchronously leading me toward that professional path. I have gained a lot of insight on various things regarding that profession, and I believe I am heading in the right direction. For a long time, I have been dreaming of an environment with little pollution from the motor industry. Tesla innovations are leading the way in providing solutions to the zero-emission vehicle in this industry (Eberhard 1). I will be thrilled when I become part of it. Being a chief engineer in Tesla motor company will be my biggest fulfillment that will happen in my life, and I will endeavor to use my knowledge to provide high-end solutions that will benefit the industry and save the world from pollution. Setting goals is a significant process in our lives. It is difficult to move on swiftly with life when we don’t have goals. They act as the motivations that fuel us to live purposefu…

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The Importance of Setting Goals in Life

A goal is a desired result that a person or a system visualizes or imagines as a future possibility, plans and then commits to achieving that desired result as set previously. The setting of goals or targets is extremely necessary to move on properly and efficiently in life. Both the setting of the goal and working dedicatedly to implement those are equally important. Following the correct path for the achievement of the goal or target is of utmost importance rather than setting the goal and not following the right path to achieve it. The reasons why setting a goal is important are as mentioned below.

importance of goals in life

Goals help to provide focus – A life without a goal is simply like an arrow without a target. One can shoot the arrow anywhere one likes. Without a goal, it becomes tough to achieve anything until and unless there is something to focus on. One might have a huge potential and great talent, but without focus, the talent and abilities are simply useless. Hence, the focus is an important thing that setting of goals provides us with and with its help we are able to achieve something in life. The sense of direction is actually what enables the mind to focus on a goal and go on a path to achieve the goal instead of aimlessly going around for nothing. With a goal in mind, we know exactly what all things to do for attaining the goal.

Goals help to measure the progress – By the setting of the goals for oneself, one can keep track of one’s progress. With the help of these aims, one can set a benchmark for the performance of self and then one can compare how high or how low the performance is as compared to the level that is set. It can also be very well understood that how good or how bad one has performed in comparison to the previous performance. Thus, the goals are a very good way to measure one’s performance and then do the needful accordingly.

Also read: Importance of good health in our life

Goals help to create accountability – Having a goal in mind makes one accountable, and most importantly this accountability is only for the purpose of self. No one has any idea about the goals that have been set, and no one stands to gain if the goals are achieved. These goals solely help to create accountability of self, and by the setting of some specific goals, one can easily understand that if one is on the right track or not and if not then what needs to be done to be right back on track.

Goals keep us locked in and uninstructed – The setting of goals gives us the feeling of mental boundaries or limits that we are supposed to stay within. When one has an endpoint in mind, one automatically stays away from various distractions and stay focused towards the goal. Hence, the goals play a decisive role in preventing any hindrances or obstacles in the path of achieving the goal.

Goals help to take control of life – Goals are critical to take control of one’s life rather than allowing life to take control of oneself. There are several people who work extremely hard but are unable to achieve anything ultimately because they are just working because they need to work and are going in the direction where life is taking them. The goals will show them the direction and the target to achieve by working hard. Thus, the goals will eventually help them to take control of their life where they exactly know what they are working for.

Goals help to give motivation – Goals are the roots of motivation and inspiration. Without motivation, it becomes tough to achieve or get something in life. The setting of the goals provides one with the foundation for one’s drive. The goals provide a concrete endpoint to aim at and achieve the target with full of excitement. The goal helps one to put a hundred percent effort to achieve the target, and this focus is what results in the development of motivation.

Goals help one to be the best what one can be – The goals help to get the best out of ourselves. It helps us to achieve to the highest of our potential. The goals help us to stretch beyond our normal self and attain new heights. The goals are the best way to get the best out of life and show us what we are capable of achieving.

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Timothy A Carey Ph.D.

Goal Setting Is Not the Problem

Goals are key to living the life you want..

Posted April 6, 2024 | Reviewed by Tyler Woods

  • What Is Motivation?
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  • Having a goal to help others achieve their goals can help with our own goal achievement.

Recently, I saw a post on LinkedIn promoting a TED talk about setting goals. I was really interested in the headline because I’m a big fan of goals. With that in mind, you can perhaps imagine my surprise when I discovered that the TED talker took the position that goal-setting was something to be avoided . Not only that, but after about seven minutes and 45 seconds, the TED talker told the audience that “the only way to fail in life is to set a goal.”

To say I was amazed at this suggestion would be a severe understatement. Kind of like calling the Grand Canyon a bit of a ditch.

If I had to make a statement about goals and their importance, I would say exactly the opposite! My position is that the only way to succeed in life is to set a goal. In fact, I would go so far as to say that nothing happens in the absence of goals. Even traumas , tragedies, and mayhem are what they are only because they wreak havoc with goals.

I could push things a bit further and suggest we can’t not have goals. Even avoiding goals is a goal. We are designed as goal-achieving creatures. Goals are us.

The different views about goals that the TED talker and I have might be definitional. The TED talker defined goals as “the end towards which effort is aimed” and then went on to discuss how limiting something like “the end” is. Even if we accept this as a definition of goals, “the end” doesn’t have to mean “kaput.”

Achieving my goal of getting a Ph.D. didn’t ever feel like the end. Quite the opposite. For me, the Ph.D. signalled a whole new beginning with a much greater range of options. I felt the same way about achieving my goals of getting married and becoming a dad. Both of these events marked the beginning of wonderful new adventures.

Yet there’s absolutely no reason why “goals” have to be defined the way the TED talker said they were defined.

But the TED talker did say how he thought goals were defined and then, based on this definition, his suggestion was that, instead of setting goals, we focus on objectives because “objectives” are limitless.

Well, maybe objectives are limitless, and maybe they aren’t. A quick Google search reveals that the terms “goal” and “objective” can be considered to be very similar and, in fact, are sometimes even used interchangeably.

We could get caught up in how similar or different goals and objectives might be but surely the much more important matter is, are you living the life you want? Call the activity that fills your day whatever you like. To what extent are you doing what you want to be doing?

After listening to the TED talk, it seemed to me that we might get a lot further in being all that we want to be if we focused more on the “thing” a word depicts rather than the word itself. Do the words “goal” and “objective” describe two different “things”?

In fact, there’s a whole bunch of words that all signal the same process. Words like aim, dream, intent, purpose, ambition, point, desire, motive, aspiration, and mission indicate the same process described by the words “goal” and “objective.”

It’s the process that’s crucial to understand if you want contentment and well-being to be more constant features of your daily landscape. What you call that process is much less important.

The process, in this case, is the business of creating and maintaining experiences we care about. There’s an even simpler way of saying all that. Actually, one word will do. The word is “control.” Control is what every living thing does to keep itself living.

venakr, Image ID: 220413955, @123RF

Bonsai trees control and so do pink fairy armadillos. The bonsai process is a very cool example of interacting controllers. A few years ago, I was an avid bonsaier. I’m sure I will be again. With each of my bonsais, I had a clear idea of how I wanted the miniature tree to look, and I nipped and cut leaves and branches to get the look I wanted. I used wire as well to make sure the branches grew as I wanted them to.

the importance of setting goals essay

The reason I had to do all that artful manipulating was because the itty bitty trees were controllers, too. The trident maple and the swamp cypress forest sprouted leaves and branches according to their own design, not the ideas I had. And I had to make sure that, in all my clipping and snipping, I didn’t interfere too much with the tree’s controlling. On occasion, a branch I had been coaxing to take a particular form would actually whither and die. A couple of times, a whole tree stopped controlling and ended up as a lifeless twig.

The same process can be spotted in lots of other daily activities. Pets offer great examples. At the moment, I have several pairs of finches in cages in our house. The reason the cages are necessary is because the little feathered controllers’ ideas of where they would like to roost and spend their time are different from my ideas. I get evidence of that if I forget to pay attention when I open a cage door to top up their seed containers.

We frequently see people walking their dogs past our house. The reason that people have leashes connecting them with their dogs is because dogs are controllers, too. The paths of a dog on or off a leash are very different.

Control is all around us. Our towns and cities are the way they are because people have certain ideas, dreams , and, dare I say it, goals. These inklings produce buildings and bridges and the daily bustle of social life . Perhaps the most incredibly ironic and fabulous quirk of our goal-achieving nature is that having a goal to help others achieve their goals actually helps with our own goal satisfaction.

Understanding the beautiful, ubiquitous, natural phenomenon of control might help us all do what we do more efficiently and harmoniously.

Timothy A Carey Ph.D.

Tim Carey, Ph.D. , is the Chair Country Health Research and Innovation at Curtin University.

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The Importance of Goal-Setting Essay

the importance of setting goals essay

The Importance Of Goal Setting

Goal setting is a powerful process for thinking about my ideal future, and for motivating me to turn my vision of this future into reality. Many people might feel as if they are adrift in the world. They work hard, but they don 't seem to get anywhere worthwhile. Setting goals helped me choose where I wanted to go in life. By knowing precisely what I wanted to achieve, I know where I have to concentrate my efforts. I also quickly spotted the distractions that can, so easily, lead me astray. By setting sharp, clearly defined goals, I can measure and take pride in the achievement of those goals. When developing my goals, I need to be sure to differentiate between my necessities and my wants. Once I had my long-term goals in place, I then created…

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over a certain time period, may help one be more committed to success and achieving one’s goals. Importance of Setting Goals Goal setting is the…

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important to set goals. Goals give you something to work towards. They provide you with motivation to continually improve and work toward achieving the goal you have set. Personally, I try to set goals for myself in various areas of my life. I have noticed that when I set goals for myself I usually work harder, and have a better chance of achieving what I want to accomplish. Some goals I will address in this essay include academic goals, and personal life goals. I tend to be very indecisive…

Personal Goal Setting: Planning To Live Your Life Your Ways

Setting goals allows for one to choose what they want to do in life. The process of goal setting helps boost confidence and concentration on what truly matters in life. In the article Personal Goal Setting: Planning to Live Your Life Your Way by Sarah Pavey, Pavey lists many reasons on why goal setting is of such importance and also provides many useful tips on how to begin goal setting. Setting specific goals, whether it is a one month plan or one year plan, allows for less distractions in life…

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I believe my personal and learning goals will help me to develop new skills that could be used later in my schooling journey and even after. My personal goal is to find a sport to play for recreation and fitness which I will like and hopefully make new friends whilst learning and having fun, contributing to my health and fitness. My personal goal is to complete year 12 at Darwin High and to then study Law at a University of my choice. The goals I have set for myself, I believe, are realistic…

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Being goal-oriented is considered one of the most important traits of an influential leader (Sullivan, 2013). Goals help individuals focus on the final target and keep them on track. Having goals give individuals feeling of control, and therefore, more motivation to take action toward their achievement. Daily steps toward goal achievement increase self-confidence and lead to the attainment of the final desired outcome (DeNisco & Barker, 2013). Sullivan (2013) states that while no one can control…

Self-Brown And Mathews's Effect On Classroom Structures

Student Achievement goals Orientation, by Shannon R. Self-Brown and Samuel Mathews II, was published in The Journal of Educational Research in 2003. In the study, Self-Brown and Mathews wanted to study the effect of how three different types of classroom structures affect the goals that students set for themselves. In today’s schools students consistently show a lack of motivation. They take for granted the educational opportunity that is in front of them. Students frequently do what is…

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term goal for my health behavior change was to work out twice during the week. This goal was for the first five weeks of our change. My long term goal is to work out four times a week. Working out does not need to be lifting weights or running, but it can be walking for 30 minutes. I also had a middle goal, so I had increases in how many times I worked out during the week. My middle goal was to increase from working out twice a week to working out three times a week after the first five weeks. …

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is imperative to set goals during the course of one’s collegiate career in order to develop the mind, the body and how one presents themselves socially. Continually, the average male ages 18-30 can run a mile in nine minutes or less (“The Average 1-Mile Run Times.” The Average 1-Mile Run Times / Chron.com. Michael Shiva Best, n.d. Tues. 25 Jan.2017.) With that in mind, achieving an endurance goal, like running a mile in seven minutes and thirty seconds,…

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These elements are what does the situation require, how can my strengths, performance, and values generate an impact that needs to be done, and what results needs to be achieved to create a difference. When setting goals, you should consider what goals that you can achieve in the next year and a half; yet the goal should be difficult to achieve though within reach and should be meaningful. The course of action should be what to do, where and how to start, and what goals and deadlines that needs…

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English Summary

Importance of Goals in Life Essay

Everyone should have goals in life. Goals make life beautiful. When you have a goal, you live for that goal and put effort each day to achieve it. And when you achieve that goal, it brings you unlimited happiness. 

Goals can be long term as well as short term both. For example, a short term goal can be completing your homework, finishing some work on time, scoring good marks in a class test, cleaning your room, etc.

A long term goal can be learning an instrument, a career goal like becoming a doctor, teacher, engineer, learning how to drive, buying a house or a car of your own, etc. 

The long term goals play important roles in life because of the time involved and we choose our career goal. Choosing a particular career affects our lives the most during the struggle of achieving it and also once we achieve.

For example, you want to become a doctor. It will require hard work of at least 5 years. Also, when you will become one and treat people, it will affect your life in many ways. Profession decides the way of your life. So one should choose a career goal wisely keeping interests and choices in mind. 

The goals vary from individual to individual but there are some goals that should be common to all. For example, serving society by helping others, working for the growth of your nation, fulfilling parent’s expectations and respecting them and to become a good human being. Such day to day goals helps people to perform better in life.   

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NPR defends its journalism after senior editor says it has lost the public's trust

David Folkenflik 2018 square

David Folkenflik

the importance of setting goals essay

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust.

NPR's top news executive defended its journalism and its commitment to reflecting a diverse array of views on Tuesday after a senior NPR editor wrote a broad critique of how the network has covered some of the most important stories of the age.

"An open-minded spirit no longer exists within NPR, and now, predictably, we don't have an audience that reflects America," writes Uri Berliner.

A strategic emphasis on diversity and inclusion on the basis of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation, promoted by NPR's former CEO, John Lansing, has fed "the absence of viewpoint diversity," Berliner writes.

NPR's chief news executive, Edith Chapin, wrote in a memo to staff Tuesday afternoon that she and the news leadership team strongly reject Berliner's assessment.

"We're proud to stand behind the exceptional work that our desks and shows do to cover a wide range of challenging stories," she wrote. "We believe that inclusion — among our staff, with our sourcing, and in our overall coverage — is critical to telling the nuanced stories of this country and our world."

NPR names tech executive Katherine Maher to lead in turbulent era

NPR names tech executive Katherine Maher to lead in turbulent era

She added, "None of our work is above scrutiny or critique. We must have vigorous discussions in the newsroom about how we serve the public as a whole."

A spokesperson for NPR said Chapin, who also serves as the network's chief content officer, would have no further comment.

Praised by NPR's critics

Berliner is a senior editor on NPR's Business Desk. (Disclosure: I, too, am part of the Business Desk, and Berliner has edited many of my past stories. He did not see any version of this article or participate in its preparation before it was posted publicly.)

Berliner's essay , titled "I've Been at NPR for 25 years. Here's How We Lost America's Trust," was published by The Free Press, a website that has welcomed journalists who have concluded that mainstream news outlets have become reflexively liberal.

Berliner writes that as a Subaru-driving, Sarah Lawrence College graduate who "was raised by a lesbian peace activist mother ," he fits the mold of a loyal NPR fan.

Yet Berliner says NPR's news coverage has fallen short on some of the most controversial stories of recent years, from the question of whether former President Donald Trump colluded with Russia in the 2016 election, to the origins of the virus that causes COVID-19, to the significance and provenance of emails leaked from a laptop owned by Hunter Biden weeks before the 2020 election. In addition, he blasted NPR's coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

On each of these stories, Berliner asserts, NPR has suffered from groupthink due to too little diversity of viewpoints in the newsroom.

The essay ricocheted Tuesday around conservative media , with some labeling Berliner a whistleblower . Others picked it up on social media, including Elon Musk, who has lambasted NPR for leaving his social media site, X. (Musk emailed another NPR reporter a link to Berliner's article with a gibe that the reporter was a "quisling" — a World War II reference to someone who collaborates with the enemy.)

When asked for further comment late Tuesday, Berliner declined, saying the essay spoke for itself.

The arguments he raises — and counters — have percolated across U.S. newsrooms in recent years. The #MeToo sexual harassment scandals of 2016 and 2017 forced newsrooms to listen to and heed more junior colleagues. The social justice movement prompted by the killing of George Floyd in 2020 inspired a reckoning in many places. Newsroom leaders often appeared to stand on shaky ground.

Leaders at many newsrooms, including top editors at The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times , lost their jobs. Legendary Washington Post Executive Editor Martin Baron wrote in his memoir that he feared his bonds with the staff were "frayed beyond repair," especially over the degree of self-expression his journalists expected to exert on social media, before he decided to step down in early 2021.

Since then, Baron and others — including leaders of some of these newsrooms — have suggested that the pendulum has swung too far.

Legendary editor Marty Baron describes his 'Collision of Power' with Trump and Bezos

Author Interviews

Legendary editor marty baron describes his 'collision of power' with trump and bezos.

New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger warned last year against journalists embracing a stance of what he calls "one-side-ism": "where journalists are demonstrating that they're on the side of the righteous."

"I really think that that can create blind spots and echo chambers," he said.

Internal arguments at The Times over the strength of its reporting on accusations that Hamas engaged in sexual assaults as part of a strategy for its Oct. 7 attack on Israel erupted publicly . The paper conducted an investigation to determine the source of a leak over a planned episode of the paper's podcast The Daily on the subject, which months later has not been released. The newsroom guild accused the paper of "targeted interrogation" of journalists of Middle Eastern descent.

Heated pushback in NPR's newsroom

Given Berliner's account of private conversations, several NPR journalists question whether they can now trust him with unguarded assessments about stories in real time. Others express frustration that he had not sought out comment in advance of publication. Berliner acknowledged to me that for this story, he did not seek NPR's approval to publish the piece, nor did he give the network advance notice.

Some of Berliner's NPR colleagues are responding heatedly. Fernando Alfonso, a senior supervising editor for digital news, wrote that he wholeheartedly rejected Berliner's critique of the coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict, for which NPR's journalists, like their peers, periodically put themselves at risk.

Alfonso also took issue with Berliner's concern over the focus on diversity at NPR.

"As a person of color who has often worked in newsrooms with little to no people who look like me, the efforts NPR has made to diversify its workforce and its sources are unique and appropriate given the news industry's long-standing lack of diversity," Alfonso says. "These efforts should be celebrated and not denigrated as Uri has done."

After this story was first published, Berliner contested Alfonso's characterization, saying his criticism of NPR is about the lack of diversity of viewpoints, not its diversity itself.

"I never criticized NPR's priority of achieving a more diverse workforce in terms of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. I have not 'denigrated' NPR's newsroom diversity goals," Berliner said. "That's wrong."

Questions of diversity

Under former CEO John Lansing, NPR made increasing diversity, both of its staff and its audience, its "North Star" mission. Berliner says in the essay that NPR failed to consider broader diversity of viewpoint, noting, "In D.C., where NPR is headquartered and many of us live, I found 87 registered Democrats working in editorial positions and zero Republicans."

Berliner cited audience estimates that suggested a concurrent falloff in listening by Republicans. (The number of people listening to NPR broadcasts and terrestrial radio broadly has declined since the start of the pandemic.)

Former NPR vice president for news and ombudsman Jeffrey Dvorkin tweeted , "I know Uri. He's not wrong."

Others questioned Berliner's logic. "This probably gets causality somewhat backward," tweeted Semafor Washington editor Jordan Weissmann . "I'd guess that a lot of NPR listeners who voted for [Mitt] Romney have changed how they identify politically."

Similarly, Nieman Lab founder Joshua Benton suggested the rise of Trump alienated many NPR-appreciating Republicans from the GOP.

In recent years, NPR has greatly enhanced the percentage of people of color in its workforce and its executive ranks. Four out of 10 staffers are people of color; nearly half of NPR's leadership team identifies as Black, Asian or Latino.

"The philosophy is: Do you want to serve all of America and make sure it sounds like all of America, or not?" Lansing, who stepped down last month, says in response to Berliner's piece. "I'd welcome the argument against that."

"On radio, we were really lagging in our representation of an audience that makes us look like what America looks like today," Lansing says. The U.S. looks and sounds a lot different than it did in 1971, when NPR's first show was broadcast, Lansing says.

A network spokesperson says new NPR CEO Katherine Maher supports Chapin and her response to Berliner's critique.

The spokesperson says that Maher "believes that it's a healthy thing for a public service newsroom to engage in rigorous consideration of the needs of our audiences, including where we serve our mission well and where we can serve it better."

Disclosure: This story was reported and written by NPR Media Correspondent David Folkenflik and edited by Deputy Business Editor Emily Kopp and Managing Editor Gerry Holmes. Under NPR's protocol for reporting on itself, no NPR corporate official or news executive reviewed this story before it was posted publicly.

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  1. The Importance, Benefits, and Value of Goal Setting

    Goal setting does not have to be boring. There are many benefits and advantages to having a set of goals to work towards. Setting goals helps trigger new behaviors, helps guides your focus and helps you sustain that momentum in life. Goals also help align your focus and promote a sense of self-mastery.

  2. Importance of Setting Goals Essay

    The Importance of Setting Goals. Setting goals is the most important thing you can do in your life. Without goal's you are going to have no direction, no ambition to be successful, no drive to stay in school, and trouble finding a career that will provide for you. Without these three things, achieving your goals is going to be one of the ...

  3. Essay on Goal Setting

    First, by setting goals, students can prioritize what is important to them and better manage their time. Second, goal setting helps students stay focused and motivated to achieve their goals. Finally, by setting goals, students can measure their progress and see how far they have come. Goal setting is a important tool for success because it ...

  4. How To Write A Powerful Essay On Achieving Goals (+ Example)

    Goal setting is a useful strategy to get the most out of life and set yourself up for success. However, there are many things to remember regarding proper goal setting and achievement. When writing a blm argumentative essay, it's important to provide context on the history of the Black Lives Matter movement and the issues it seeks to address ...

  5. Why Goal Setting Is Important: How to Set Goals And Succeed

    5. Commit. Goal setting is an ongoing commitment, not just a way of achieving results. Be sure to schedule regular reminders to keep yourself focused, and allot daily or weekly time slots to review and update your goals. While your end goal may stay the same in the long term, how you get there can change drastically.

  6. Importance of Setting and Achieving Goals

    Importance of Setting and Achieving Goals. As a college student, setting and achieving goals is essential to both academic and personal success. Goals and objectives provide a clear direction, motivation, and a sense of accomplishment. In this essay, we will discuss the definition, significance, and types of goals and objectives.

  7. Essays About Goals: Top 5 Examples Plus 10 Prompts

    10 Prompts on Essays About Goals. 1. My Goals in Life. In this essay, delve into your short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals. Before anything else, elaborate on what drew you to set these goals. Then, share your action plans to make them a reality. Discuss the obstacles you've faced and how you've conquered them.

  8. Why Setting a Goal is Important on a Pathway to Success

    Goal-setting cultivates self-discipline and accountability, as individuals must adhere to a plan and take consistent actions to achieve their objectives. This process encourages individuals to manage their time effectively, prioritize tasks, and make deliberate choices that align with their goals. When aiming to adopt a healthier lifestyle, an ...

  9. Setting Goals & Staying Motivated

    This handout guides writers through the important process of goal-setting for the personal Intensive Writing Experience. Specifically, it talks about how to (1) formulate specific, measurable, and reasonable writing goals, (2) set an overall IWE goal, (3) break up the overall goal into smaller, daily goals, and (4) break up daily goals into ...

  10. The Impact of Goal Setting on Motivation and Success Essay

    To achieve one's goals, one needs to define the target correctly and sustain intrinsic motivation. According to Seo et al. (2018), "setting and pursuing goals is an important factor contributing to individuals' success" (p. 386). To succeed at goal achievement, one needs to integrate self-control, motives, and vision (Kehr, 2019).

  11. The Significance of SMART Goals: [Essay Example], 629 words

    The Importance of Setting SMART Goals as a College Student Essay Goals give direction and meaning to life, and they keep individuals motivated. The acronym SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

  12. Essay on Goals in Life

    The Importance of Setting Goals. Setting goals is a fundamental component to long-term success. The basic reason for this is the ability of goals to create a bridge between our present and our desired future. They serve as motivators, pushing us to step out of our comfort zones, face challenges, and strive for improvement.

  13. Importance of Setting Goals and Strategic Planning In an ...

    In addition to setting of achievable goals, strategic planning is another important strategy of increasing the level and quality of work output. With the ever-increasing scarcity of resources and competition in most business scenarios, it is important for an organization to formulate appropriate strategic plans, as they are the first step in ...

  14. Achieving Success Through Goal Setting: A Comprehensive Approach

    As a manager, my ongoing goal is to sustain the café's success, exemplifying the need for continuous effort and determination to preserve achieved goals. In conclusion, the process of goal setting is integral to long-term success, serving as a compass that guides individuals through the complexities of personal and professional life.

  15. The Importance of Setting Goals

    Setting and achieving goals can help in many areas of your life. Here are a few reasons why setting goals — and achieving them — is so important. Spark Motivation. Going to work and doing the same thing repeatedly becomes not only routine, but also a bit boring. To keep things interesting, create goals for yourself.

  16. Why is Setting a Goal Important (Free Essay Example)

    Why Is It Important To Set A Goal. The importance of goal-setting can be understood from this example: Imagine a person who wants to be happy, healthy, and has enough money. These are commendable aspirations and many people in this world share these wants. Still, a large proportion of people are unhappy, ill, and poor.

  17. The importance of setting goals Essay Sample

    The short-term goals are objectively aimed at facilitating my long goals. I can classify the goals into two categories, first are the personal growth goals and the second is the professional growth goals. I have set my long-term goal to be a professional chief engineer at Tesla motor company.

  18. Goal Setting and Time Management: Informative Essay

    When one understands the importance of time management and goal setting, they will be able to know when it's time to rest and when it's time to study or work. Time management and goal setting are inter-connected as for one to achieve their goals they need to make time and work on them, time must be managed.

  19. The Importance of Setting Goals in Life

    The reasons why setting a goal is important are as mentioned below. Goals help to provide focus - A life without a goal is simply like an arrow without a target. One can shoot the arrow anywhere one likes. Without a goal, it becomes tough to achieve anything until and unless there is something to focus on. One might have a huge potential and ...

  20. The Importance Of Setting Goals

    The Importance of Setting Goals Just from $9/Page. Order Essay. SETTING GOALS TO GET YOUR PURPOSE When you set a goal for yourself, you are asking yourself a simple question:What do I want, and what do I need to do to get there? If our purpose is our final destination, goal-setting is the way we choose to break down our journey into sections ...

  21. Goal Setting Is Not the Problem

    Key points. We are designed to achieve goals. Many different words are used to indicate the same goal-achieving process. Our lives are the goals we pursue.

  22. The Importance of Setting Smart Goals as a College Student

    Specific goals. are clearly defined and well-articulated. They should answer the questions why, what, and how. For example, instead of setting a goal to improve grades, a specific goal would be to achieve a 3.5 GPA in the current semester by attending all lectures, completing all assignments on time, and seeking help from professors when needed. This specific goal gives students a clear ...

  23. The Importance of Goal-Setting Essay

    Importance Of Goal Setting In Nursing. Being goal-oriented is considered one of the most important traits of an influential leader (Sullivan, 2013). Goals help individuals focus on the final target and keep them on track. Having goals give individuals feeling of control, and therefore, more motivation to take action toward their achievement.

  24. Importance of Goals in Life Essay

    Goals make life beautiful. When you have a goal, you live for that goal and put effort each day to achieve it. And when you achieve that goal, it brings you unlimited happiness. Goals can be long term as well as short term both. For example, a short term goal can be completing your homework, finishing some work on time, scoring good marks in a ...

  25. NPR responds after editor says it has 'lost America's trust' : NPR

    When asked for further comment late Tuesday, Berliner declined, saying the essay spoke for itself. The arguments he raises — and counters — have percolated across U.S. newsrooms in recent years.