Goal Setting

Why Goal Setting Works

Goal setting has been shown to influence behaviour and performances in a number of ways. They are a simple yet effective method that coaches, managers and performers should employ because goal setting can:

• Direct attention and focus efforts;
• Give a target to aspire to;
• Raise self confidence;
• Control arousal levels;
• Motivate, especially if short-term goals are regularly achieved;
• Enable success to be experienced;
• Regulate the amount of effort expended on a particular task thus ensuring no effort is wasted;
• Increase performer persistence and perseverance;
• Foster the development of new learning strategies.

Research has shown that goal setting is a tremendously powerful method for enhancing performance, but it must be properly implemented. There are a variety of key principles that are necessary for effective goal setting; some of these have been abbreviated into the mnemonic SMART;

Specific

Measurable

Achievable

Realistic

Time-bound

Different books and websites have different versions of SMART goals but this is for Edexcel PE.

Specific goals can influence behaviour more effectively than ‘do your best’ or general goals; this means that the athlete knows what they are working towards and when they have reached the goal.

An example of a general goal would be “I want to improve my goal keeping performance”, this is very ambiguous as there is no performance indicator. A more specific goal would be “I want to keep a clean sheet in the next match”, this makes it clear for the performer and directs behaviour towards this target.

Measurable goals require the goal to have some form of quantitative score such as a set time, distance or number of places in the league. These goals should be written down so the performer can easily track them.

Realistic goals should not be too easy or too difficult. They should be challenging yet achievable within the athlete’s capabilities, so that the performer does not become disheartened by being unable to reach the goal. An example of an unrealistic goal is setting an obese, non-exerciser, the target of running the next London Marathon; this would decrease motivation, as the individual would know that there was no chance of achieving the goal. A more realistic goal would be setting the target of walking continuously up to one hour by the end of the first month; this would be a challenge but within reason.

Behavioural change does not happen quickly and goal setting must reflect this. Having time-bound goals can be very motivating; breaking the goal up into smaller incremental steps provides regular boosts in confidence and satisfaction every time one is achieved. Deadlines need to be set for each of these goals preventing the individual taking too long and losing interest in achieving their goals.

A 110m hurdler may set a goal of qualifying for the semi-finals in the next Olympics (up to 4 years away). This is an example of a long-term goal. The athlete would then set a series of short and medium-term goals in an attempt to map out achievement of this long-term goal. A medium-term goal could be achieving a time of 13.5 seconds in the national championships. A short-term goal would be to improve their start (the first 20m) by 0.05 seconds and running a time of better than 13.7 seconds in the upcoming race.