Why Is Goal Planning And Targeting Important To Success In Study?
Nothing great ever happens by accident. Successful people from all walks of life don’t just wake up one morning as high achievers! For change to happen, a plan of action has to be made, targets have to be set and a commitment to see it through has to be adopted.
Prior to commencing your training course, take the time to think about your personal goals, and work out a study programme with targets or indicators of success along the way. To help you get started, use the acronym Smart to qualify the goals you plan to achieve. Smart stands for specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and targeted.
Use the following five D’s to help you get emotionally involved with the result of your efforts. Write your five D’s down in a contract to yourself.
DEFINE exactly what you expect to get from your efforts, in terms of possessions, income, lifestyle etc. Make a collage of pictures that reflects these things, and look at them regularly (e.g. before your study sessions). The more specifically you define what you want, the better.
DESIRE (why you’re doing it) e.g. personal challenge, get out from where you are, you owe it to yourself to have a better job, to prove to someone you’ve got what it takes, to take control of your destiny. This needs to be something that stirs an emotion within you.
DEDICATION is a measure of how commited you are to a successful end result. Plan your time each week so you know exactly when you’re dedicated to studying. This not only helps you to get into a routine, it’s also an indicator for those around you that you’re engaged in something that’s important to you. They won’t expect you to get involved in different activities when your diary shows a study period if you’ve been consistently sticking to your routine. Setting aside ‘official’ study times helps you to concentrate, and prevents you from thinking about other things that you could be doing. It also frees up your mind to enjoy leisure time outside of study periods.
DETERMINATION - The will to stick to the plan until completion and see it through. This is your contract to ensure that you won’t let yourself down.
Having a plan and targets to work towards gives you a DISCIPLINE that helps you to power through the tough times that will occasionally strike you.
Your contract is the beginning of your new life. Those who write down their goals in a specific and realistic manner, then work diligently and consistently to achieve them, have proven to be amongst the world’s most successful people. Read your contract every day, and add positive new jottings and pictures to it that will help you when the going gets tough. Plan your work, and then work your plan with commitment. In two years time your life could be unrecognisable to those who know you now.