I could have started this series of post with goal setting, but the usual case is for a player to be overwhelmed by outside expectations and then realize they need to bring these external influences under control by setting their own goals. Your goals should be used to establish your expectations, but unfortunately many times it is done the other way around. Let me write a few words about establishing long-term and short-term goals and my next post will be about how this can be used to set your expectations.
Motivation for Setting Goals
Establishing goals makes the your purpose clear and provides direction. The successful player set goals in order to stimulate action in a way to achieve their objectives by focusing attention and energy. Personal goal setting is essential for gaining control of your potential and turning it into success.
Successful athletes start the season with the aim to achieve something. Success is on their mind. The need to achieve creates a real and understandable pressure. Unfortunately, many players try to eliminate the pressure by not setting any goals. In these cases, goals are set by default. Whatever you think about will function as the goal. If you fail to set specific, positive, controllable goals, then you will spend your time concerning yourself with the pressure and failure is the consequence. You have inadvertently set the goal of failing. Since goal setting is inevitable, you should conscientiously set positive goals for both the long-term and the season that will keep yourself directed and focused. Here are some guidelines for setting goals.
Guidelines for Setting Goals
- Goals across different time horizons must be consistent
The attainment of one goal should not interfere with the attainment of the others. The long-term (3 year, 5 year, and 10 year) goals need to be consistent with the short-term (season) goals. First, identify your longest term goal, your next longest term goal, your next next longest term goal, and so on until you reach this season's goals. By picking the furthest out goal and working backwards, your goals will be aligned and compatible because each successively closer in time goal will be a stepping stone to reaching the next one. By making the close goals aligned with the longer term goal, the achievements of the shorter term goals provides direction and enable the player to visualize a path to their eventual success.
- Goals should be limited in number
In competitive sports, the successful player has single-minded focus and is not distracted by the feelings of today. To keep this single-minded focus, you should have one 10 year goal with one 5 year goal and one 3 year goal that are necessary steps to reaching the 10 year goal. Attention can then be concentrated on a few number of season performance goals. You should choose no more than three season goals. The purpose of short-term performance goals is to provide a measuring stick toward reaching your longer term goals. If you realize you are coming up short on one of these goals, then you will need to break the shortfall down and develop a practice plan to address the issue. For maximum effectiveness, a player can only work on one area at a time. If you have too many short term goals, you will probably be coming up short in multiple areas and be tempted to work on them all simultaneously, in which case you will either feel overwhelmed or be spread too thin and fail to achieve the desired improvement.
The most common mistake in this area, besides not setting goals, is for a player to set a goal that they do not control. An example of an uncontrollable goal would be a player setting their target on being first team all-league or the team's most-valuable player. While these achievement are noble, the player does not control the outcome. The selection for this position is made by coaches and organization officials, not by the player. The player does not get the deciding vote nor even a participatory vote. In this case, a better goal would be to identify the key performance metric that would put you into a position for consideration or selection to that honorary position.
- Season goals should be prioritized and broken down into concrete and measurable achievements
The most important of this season's goals should be at the top of the list. Ask yourself the question: If I achieve one performance related metric this season, it will be successful; the metric is .... That metric is this season's most important goal. The other two season goals are important to your long term success, but they are subservient to this one overarching metric for this season. The next step is to focus on the achievements required (the method) to getting to your seasonal goals. The method to reaching the goal confines your thoughts, directs your focus, and removes distractions. The methods allow you to maintain control and provide an actionable roadmap toward reaching your goal.
Setting goals with too short of a time horizon, such as a game goal, is confusing tactical steps to reach a goal and the goal itself. Some coaches will say, "Let's win this quarter" or "Let's win this inning." This phrase enhance player focus and is a concrete achievement the team goal, but it is not the goal. For example, the team goal is to win their conference. To meet the goal of winning the conference, a step the team must take is to win 90% of their home games and 50% of their away games. To reach the measurable record achievement, the laws of probabilities say you must win more quarters or innings than your opponents. The step is winning quarters and innings, the measurable achievement is to have a specified home / away win record, and the team goal is to win the conference.
- Goals should be committed to writing
Putting the goals in writing encourages the writer's personal commitment to specific and directed behavior. The writing process helps assure that the goal setting process is through, rather than being casually created. There is something about putting a goal in black and white that encourages commitment and dedication. It makes the goals real, not an abstract concept or idea.
- Reread the goals regularly and judge behavior and performance regularly
Writing carefully selected goals takes time. Since you spent the time crafting the goals, do not let them slip away and be forgotten. Tape the first copy to your bathroom mirror so every morning you will see them before you start your day. Make a second copy and tape it to the bottom of your computer monitor so you will see them as you surf the web (and read this blog ;=) ). Use one of the many free mp3 recording software solutions available and make a recording of your goals using your own voice and put it on your mp3 player so it will randomly play when your relaxing as a gentle reminder of what is important in your life.
- Goals can be changed
This statement probably leaves you a little befuddled, so let's put it into context. Remember, goal setting is to drive commitment and specific behaviors. If a basketball player sets a personal season goal of averaging 15 points per game throughout their high school season. Then, half way through the season they realize that their scoring average is 8 points per game. If the goal is left unchanged, they will need to achieve a 22 point scoring average during the second half of the season, which is triple their current average. Is this attainable? Probably not. Human behavior will dismiss this as an unachievable goal and the player will become discouraged or worse, coast through the later part of the season and forget about the original goal. The player can re-evaluate the goal and change it to averaging a more realistic stretch goal of averaging 10 or 12 points per game in the second half of the season. By doing this, the player honors the intent of goal setting, which is to drive their behavior and performance.
Wrapping up
When goal setting, start at the end and work backward. Start with the 10 year goal and successively work backwards to this seasons goals. Along the way, keep asking yourself: in order to achieve the next goal, I need to do this first.
Start now. What are your 10 year, 5 year, 3 year, and season goals? Do not over think your goals, just put down what comes to mind. You can update them in a couple of months. By just describing your goals, you are ahead of 75% of your competitors. By writing them down and taping them to you computer monitor, you are ahead of 95% of your competitors. By referring to them regularly, you are ahead of 99% of your competitors and well down your path to success. Start writing now!
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