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How to Actually Accomplish Your Goals this Year
By Jarrod Walker Staff Writer
W
ith the new year finally here, countless people around the world have made so-called “New Year’s Resolutions.” Thing is, most people will have failed or forgotten about them by the time March rolls around. This begs the question, what exactly is it about the way we set goals that makes them so hard to keep? And, how can we better set goals so we actually follow through with them? My friend, Travis Cole, attended the Memorial University of St. With John’s in Newfoundland during these scientifically 2014. He had been going for three proven techniques, years and was on track to graduate planning your goals has never been simpler. with a degree in Psychology, but due to unforeseen circumstances, had to take medical leave. Since then, he hasn’t made any plans to go back and has instead been working at Walmart while monitoring his health. Travis says, “I want to go back someday, but I’m not really prepared to be on my own. I also have to get my money/loans together.” He mentioned that it’s not too complicated of a process, but he isn’t quite sure how it works or how to go about it. From what I’ve noticed, Travis, like many Photo by Marcos Paulo other people, has big dreams for Prado on Unsplash. the future but lacks one key thing: A specific, well thought out plan of action. So, this year I did some research and picked up some goal-making skills of my own. Lisa Slade, Director of Counseling and Wellness at Housatonic, taught me one goal setting strategy that’s worked for her, “goal mapping.”
Goal mapping is one of many ways of goal planning that begins with you finding your main goal, and then figuring out all the smaller tasks that come together to make up that goal. For example, let’s say your big goal is to, “graduate from college.” On the level below that goal, some smaller goals could be attending your classes, making sure you do all your work, etc. However, goal mapping goes a step further and asks, “What steps do I need to take to accomplish my smaller goals?” So, in order to attend your classes and do all your work, some even smaller goals could be to get a good night’s sleep, ask your teacher for help if you need it, or take care of your other responsibilities so you have more time for school. The point of goal mapping is to make your goals as specific and practical as possible, so there’s no guesswork in what you need to do next. Lisa says this approach is like “eating an elephant.” This is because you take things “one bite at a time,” doing smaller things that add up over time until you reach your destination. Laura Turiano, Associate Professor of Psychology, says there are two big reasons people don’t achieve their goals. From her I learned that there are two big reasons people don’t achieve their goals. When it comes to making goals, we get “caught up in the moment,” so to speak, and don’t construct them in meaningful ways. For example, we could see a beautiful house when driving around town and think, “I want a house like that!” and in that instance make an impulsive goal. However, such a goal isn’t really well thought out or constructed, which makes it hard to obtain. On the other hand, the goals we make slip away from us because we have not fully analyzed what it will take to reach them. We want to buy a house but haven’t asked ourselves the right questions: How much will we need to buy the house? How many hours will I need to work to have enough money to buy the house? If I need to take out a loan,
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