SETTING GOALS FOR SUCCESS

THE IMPORTANCE OF GOALS

Effective goals motivate and inspire us, increase success rate, focus us, and
reduce frustration. Aneffective goal setting process helps us understand where we
currently are, helps us choose wherewe want to go, and assess the best steps to
take to reach our ultimate outcome goals.

What is a Goal?
According to Wikipedia, A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a
person or a group ofpeople envision, plan and commit to achieve. A goal is roughly
similar to a purpose or aim, the anticipated result which guides reaction, or an
end,which is an object, either a physical object or an abstract object, that has
intrinsic value.

Types of Goals
Outcome goals (Results). Outcomes goals are specific and spell out
the results you hope toachieve in the end. E.g., a high school student may set
an outcome goal to become a doctor. Thatgoal means that she would have to take
exams and compete with other students over few spots intomedical school. While you
can study hard, you don’t grade your exams. While you can prepare wellfor your
interviews, you don’t choose yourself. As such, with most outcome goals, you can
takesteps that influence the outcome in your favor but the results are ultimately
not under your control.

Process goals (Behaviors). Process goals (also called procedural goals) are the
behaviors or thestrategies that will help us to perform well and increase our
chances of achieving our desiredoutcome goals. It’s the goal that sets the path
to an outcome goal. E.g. The process goal for losingweight may include reducing
calories, riding your bicycle, and drinking lots of water. Process goalsare
particularly helpful for weight loss because they help you focus on changing
behaviors andhabits that are necessary for losing weight. A nice thing about
process goals is that they are within our control.

Performance goals (Standards). Performance goals set the standards at which we will
perform our process goals. This is focused on results. Performance goals are
actually the results you produce that affect the bottom line. Meeting your
performance goals on your process goals is the surest way to achieve your outcome
goals. E.g. the performance goals for losing weight based on the process goals
above may be to lose weight by eating 1200 calories a day or less, riding my
bikefor 30 minutes 5 times per week, and drinking 3 liters of water at per day for
a period of one month.

Why is goal setting important?

1. Goals give you focus in life
2. Goals allow you to measure your progress
3. Goals Keep You Locked In And Undistracted
4. Goals Help You Overcome Procrastination
5. Goals Give You Motivation

ALBERT BANDURA's SELF-EFFICACY

Albert Bandura is the well-known social-cognitive psychologist who is famous in

postulating the theory of self-efficacy. The article entitled "Self-efficacy:
Toward a Unifying Theory of Behavioral Change" and it is became an instant classic
in psychology (Kendra 2017).
Self-efficacy is a person's belief in their ability to complete a task or achieve a
goal. It encompasses a person's confidence in themselves to control their behavior,
exert an influence over their environment, and stay motivated in the pursuit of
their goal. People can have self-efficacy in different situations and domains, such
as school, work, relationships, and other important areas.

According to Albert Bandura, self-efficacy is "the belief in one’s capabilities to

organize and execute the courses of action required to manage prospective
situations." Self-efficacy is a person’s belief in their ability to succeed in a
particular situation. Such beliefs play a role in determining how people think,
behave, and feel.

The Role of Self-Efficacy

Bandura and others have found that an individual’s self-efficacy plays a major role
in how goals, tasks, and challenges are approached.1

Having high self-efficacy is a good thing. People with a strong sense of self-
efficacy:
-Develop a deeper interest in the activities in which they participate
-Form a stronger sense of commitment to their interests and activities
-Recover quickly from setbacks and disappointments
-View challenging problems as tasks to be mastered

Poor self-efficacy, on the other hand, can have a number of detrimental effects.
People with a weak sense of self-efficacy:
-Avoid challenging tasks
-Believe that difficult tasks and situations are beyond their capabilities
-Focus on personal failings and negative outcomes
-Quickly lose confidence in personal abilities

4 Ways to Build Self-Efficacy

Mastery Experiences
"The most effective way of developing a strong sense of efficacy is through mastery
experiences," Bandura explained. Performing a task successfully strengthens our
sense of self-efficacy. However, failing to adequately deal with a task or
challenge can undermine and weaken self-efficacy.

Social Modeling
Witnessing other people successfully completing a task is another important source
of self-efficacy.1 According to Bandura, "Seeing people similar to oneself succeed
by sustained effort raises observers' beliefs that they too possess the
capabilities to master comparable activities to succeed."

Social Persuasion
Bandura also asserted that people could be persuaded to believe that they have the
skills and capabilities to succeed. Consider a time when someone said something
positive and encouraging that helped you achieve a goal. Getting verbal
encouragement from others helps people overcome self-doubt and instead focus on
giving their best effort to the task at hand.

Physiological Response
Our own responses and emotional reactions to situations also play an important role
in self-efficacy. Moods, emotional states, physical reactions, and stress levels
can all impact how a person feels about their personal abilities in a particular
situation. A person who becomes extremely nervous before speaking in public may
develop a weak sense of self-efficacy in these situations.
However, Bandura also notes "it is not the sheer intensity of emotional and
physical reactions that is important but rather how they are perceived and
interpreted."

LOCKE'S GOAL SETTING THEORY

Goal-setting theory refers to the effects of setting goals on subsequent

performance. Researcher Edwin Locke found that individuals who set specific,
difficult goals performed better than those who set general, easy goals. Locke
proposed five basic principles of goal-setting: clarity, challenge, commitment,
feedback, and task complexity.

Effective goal-setting principles:

1. Clarity. A clear, measurable goal is more achievable than one that is poorly
defined. In other words, be specific! The most effective goals have a specific
timeline for completion.
2. Challenge. The goal must have a decent level of difficulty in order to motivate
you to strive toward the goal.
3. Commitment. Put deliberate effort into meeting this goal. Share your goal with
someone else in order to increase your accountability to meet that goal.
4. Feedback. Set up a method to receive information on your progress toward a goal.
If losing 30 pounds in four months turns out to be too hard, it is better to adjust
the difficulty of your goal mid-way through the timeline than to give up entirely.
5. Task complexity. If a goal is especially complex, make sure you give yourself
enough time to overcome the learning curve involved in completing the task. In
other words, if a goal is really tough, make sure you give yourself some padding to
give you the best chance at succeeding.