New School Year: Make a Goal

At the beginning of school, the desire to make goals washes over everyone.  You can't help but write a beautiful page of goals for the year with grand statements written in calligraphy:  "Get a 4.0!"..."Get all As and Bs!"..."Make the High Honor Roll!"  And yes--these are great goals, but I've got to ask--are these goals great for everyone?  The reason I ask this is that not every student has the same baseline to begin with.  If a student has only earned Cs and Ds in the past year, a goal of "Get all As and Bs" is not just lofty, it's virtually out of reach not because the student doesn't want it, but because it's too far of a jump for anyone besides Superman to make.  

In the past two weeks, we've seen some great Superman moments from Rio 2016.  And although it's easy to focus on how many medals Michael Phelps has won in swimming, I'd like to point you to a different example of making and meeting goals from the U.S. Rowing Team.  Listen to the excerpt from an NPR Interview with Andrew Campbell, Jr.  (listen from about :55 - 2:22)

                                                          Rowing at the Rio Olympics

Did you catch that?  He placed 5^th at the Olympics.  He won’t stand on the Stadium.   He won’t be spotlighted on the Nightly ReCap of great moments.  He won’t be recognized on billboards or cereal boxes, and yet—did you notice how genuinely happy he was with his performance?  I love that as a team, they made a specific goal that would push them and be attainable…simultaneously.  And when they made the goal, he recognized it as a good thing.  The U.S. team had never even made it into the final round in this specific sport, so the goal was based upon past performance and future growth.  Again--reasonable and difficult at the same time.  

This probably can be applied to at least half our students.  Take stock of where you are NOW.  Make a goal for the term, the semester, even the year that will push you to do a little better…but also that is attainable with consistent work.  For example, if you are earning Cs and Ds in every class last year—making a goal of earning As in every class is not a good goal.  Why?  Because it doesn’t just push you to do a little better—it pushes you beyond your abilities, and by midterms, you'll feel like your Bs aren't good enough--and then give up, landing yourself right back with Cs and Ds.  Instead, make a goal that is a little bit of push, but not so much that it overwhelms you into doing nothing.  

An Example of a Reasonable Goal:

Last Year:  Cs and Ds

This Year:  All Cs (even a C- is fine!  Just get out of the D range)

Last Year:  Ds and Fs

This Year:  Ds

Also--instead of just focusing on "grade" goals, make some performance goals, and the grades will take care of themselves.  Make a goal to work on homework in class if there is extra time, and to turn in all homework on time.  Just doing this one thing is usually enough to bump a grade up one whole letter grade. 

So, as you look over the year—push yourself.  But also, be aware that if you make and actually MEET a small goal, it is better than if you had made a large goal and completely missed it.  Take a leaf out of the book from the U.S. Rowing Team:  make a goal specific to YOU, and then be happy when you've got it, even if that means that you aren't on the Wheaties Cereal Box (High Honor Roll list).  It's a step upwards, and for that, you should be proud.