What is goal setting

“How long are you going to wait before you demand the best for yourself?” — Epictetus What do the goals we set, whether personal or professional, require? If we hope to accomplish our goals, we need the discipline to hold ourselves accountable. We need the self-control to stay focused only on the things within our control. And we need the endurance to persist through difficulty. As it happens, Stoicism is a philosophy based on self-discipline, self-control, and endurance. The Stoic Chrysippus, for instance, trained as a long-distance runner. Every day, as Diogenes Laertes recounts in Lives of Eminent Philosophers , he would set a goal, try to beat it, then when he did, he would set a new, faster goal. Because that’s what runners do, what athletes do, and what Stoics do: they try to get better everyday, they set a goal and they don’t stop until they accomplish that goal. We created this guide to help you do exactly that. It is here to help you set and achieve your goals. It is rooted in the time-tested wisdom of the Stoics. This is a long post. It should be saved and revisited. It can be read straight through or if you prefer, feel free to click the links below to navigate to a specific section: I. II. [1] [2] [3] III. [1] [2] [3] IV. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] V. VI. VII. “If you don’t have a consistent goal in life, you can’t live it in a consistent way.” — Marcus Aurelius Epictetus said that goal setting was simple: “First say to yourself what you would be; and then...

• v • t • e Goal setting involves the development of an action The theory of Locke and colleagues states that the simplest, most direct motivational explanation of why some people perform better than others is because they have different performance goals. The essence of the theory is: • Difficult specific goals lead to significantly higher performance than easy goals, no goals, or even the setting of an abstract goal such as urging people to do their best. • Holding ability constant, and given that there is goal commitment, the higher the goal the higher the performance. • Variables such as praise, feedback, or the participation of people in decision-making about the goal only influence behavior to the extent that they lead to the setting of and subsequent commitment to a specific difficult goal. History [ ] Goal setting theory has been developed through both in the field and laboratory settings. Main idea [ ] After controlling for ability, goals that are difficult to achieve and specific tend to increase performance far more than easy goals, no goals or telling people to do their best. It therefore follows that the simplest motivational explanation of why some individuals outperform others is that they have different goals. • quantification (that is, making it measurable), such as by pursuing "increase productivity by 50%" instead of "increase productivity", • enumeration, such as by defining tasks that must be completed to achieve the goal instead of only defining the g...

Your team has ambitious projects they want to achieve. Projects that have spent too much time in the backlog (cough, at least six months). You want to refine the training process for new hires, rewrite your company’s buyer personas, or finally redesign your old blog. So, how are you doing on all of your team’s objectives that are gathering dust? Not so great? Yeah, we get it. That’s because thinking of things you want to accomplish is the easy part (especially if you’re a dreamer, which we know you are). It’s when you actually need to make some progress or rally the team that the real sweat and hard work starts. Well, you ambitious thing you, that’s exactly where the goal-setting theory comes into play. Let’s roll up our sleeves and find out more so you can turn your lofty aspirations into a reality. What is the goal-setting theory? If you’re feeling extra fancy, the formal name is the goal-setting theory of motivation. It was originally outlined and published in 1968 by American psychologist, In the simplest terms, the theory states that clear, well-defined, and measurable goals improve performance much more than vague objectives do. For example, setting a goal for your team like, “Win the company-wide desk decorating contest” will light a fire under all of you much more than an amorphous goal like, “Build a better team reputation.” Locke and a fellow psychologist outlined five different principles to help you on your quest for setting effective, motivating goals. So, don...

Do you often find yourself struggling to change your habits, regardless of how willing you are to set objectives? If your goals rarely reach fruition, you are not alone. For many, there is the ‘you’ who you would like to be, and then (more consistently) the ‘you’ that you are. These two versions of yourself are not always aligned. If they were, we would all be superheroes. Disillusionment may follow about the number of things you “could” have done if only you had been persistent in your endeavors. Locke’s goal-setting theory of motivation, which has been tested and supported by hundreds of studies involving thousands of participants, consistently delivers positive changes in the lives of individuals worldwide (Locke and Latham, 2019). This article will address Locke’s ideas and give you insight into how to benefit from them. They may play a big role in helping you live your best life. Before you continue, we thought you might like to This Article Contains: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • What is Goal-Setting Theory? A Look at Edwin Locke’s Theory Does this quote sound familiar? It is vital to modern goal-setting theory, even though it is over 2,500 years old. When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps. Confucius 551-479 B.C. If you are new to this quote, it may be time to write it down and memorize it. Most goals are possible to achieve, but people are unsuccessful at goal-setting when they omit to consider the most e...

As simple as it sounds, the question, what are goals, is a very important question to answer if making the best out of our daily lives is something of great concern. Anyone will assume they already know what goals are, they’ve probably been setting goals all their lives. However, when we get too familiar with certain concepts, we tend to forget their real meaning and essence. Hence, it is not surprising that people set many goals but achieve too little. When you don’t understand what goals are or what they are meant to be, you might scribble anything on paper and call them goals and then get frustrated when you fail to achieve them. There are different perspectives on goals and what they represent. However, this article looks into the real meaning of goals and provides clarity on some misconceptions about goals. It also suggests better ways to look at goals; in a way to use them as progress markers rather than yardsticks for measuring success or failure. Table of Contents • • • • • • • • • • • • • What Are Goals? There are different definitions of goal(s) out there, however, let’s look at this one from the early pioneers in goal-setting theory: [1] A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan and commit to achieve. Goals represent the decisions we make and the commitments we take in order to reach attainment, break some bad habits, adopt useful habits or achieve more in different areas of life. ⌄ Scroll down to continu...

How often do you set goals? How often do you revisit your list? 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 This Article Contains: • • • • • • • • • • • • The Importance and Value of Goal Setting 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 o...

Do you know how to set goals ? How often do you achieve the large objectives that are important to you? If you’re having trouble following through with your goal planning, you may be tempted to stop trying. People say things like, “Maybe this is just it,” or, “I’ll settle for what I have.” But frequently what’s getting in the way of achievement is the actual goal. If your goal is to “lose weight,” how will you know when that goal is complete? When you’ve lost one pound? Five? Forty? Without a clear target, you’ll never hit your mark. That’s why it’s crucial to learn how to set goals that are clear, measurable and actionable. What is goal setting? Goal setting can look different depending on an individual’s lifestyle, values and definition of success. Your goals are unique to you and don’t need to look like anyone else’s. The classic goal-setting definition boils down to the process of identifying something you want to accomplish and establishing measurable objectives and timeframes to help you achieve it. Goal setting can help you in any area of your life, from achieving financial freedom to adopting a healthy diet . When you learn how to set goals in one area of your life, it becomes easier to set them in other areas. Setting progressive goals that allow small wins helps you move on to larger achievements. These small goals lead to progress, which is the only thing you really need to feel fulfilled and happy . Why is goal setting important? Goal setting is the fundamental...