Although the World Cup is just around the corner, these goals are the object of our ambition and efforts, our future state and destination of our journey.
Goals give us a level of control over our lives, a purpose and focus, which can motivate us to improve through a will to change. They allow us to channel our time and energies and make choices about our priorities.
What is the difference between a dream and a goal? Action! And that is where coaching comes in. Goals are integral to the coaching process as framed by Alec McPhedran’s three levels of goals in coaching:
– Aspirational goal: what will we have really achieved at the end of the coaching programme?
– Session goal: what do we need to achieve by the end of each coaching session that directly supports the aspirational goal?
– Action goal: what does the client need to do by the next session to achieve the aspirational goal?
How do you set goals?
There are stacks of models so let me highlight a few that I look to as a coach.
RATIO OF PROGRESS
Olympic athlete Alexi Pappas adopted a ratio based on how he felt to make sure his goals were stretching but achievable:
– Feeling good a third of a time
– Okay a third of a time
– Crappy a third of time
He said – “If you feel roughly in those ratios, it means you are in fact chasing a dream. If you feel too good all the time, you’re not pushing yourself enough, and if you feel too fatigued, you might be burning out or having a mental-health challenge and need to re-evaluate.”
WORTHY GOALS
This isn’t about an abstract moral rating, argues Michel Bungay Stanier, but about setting a goal worthy of you. ‘Worthy’ has three elements:
– Thrilling: the goal gets you going! You’re excited as it talks to your values, is bold and an adventure
– Important: giving more to the world than you take, a bigger win!
– Daunting: it catches your breath! It doesn’t appear impossible but not immediately clear how you’ll achieve it
SMART GOALS
Setting goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timebound can provide you with a framework to follow and if operating in a steady state, can be good for short-term direction and long-term planning.
But often this results in goals that are too narrow, that aren’t stretching and do not encourage failure. A single goal may be achievable and realistic, but are all your goals achievable and realistic when you add them up?
GOAL QUESTION GRID
I’ve developed my own question grid – it’s interactive and explores clients’ dreams, how to move these into goals and their expectations for coaching. It really provokes clients so that we can truly get to the root of what they really yearn for. This may feel uncomfortable and confronting, but I’ve found it’s the best way to set goals that lead to genuine transformation.
What models and approaches do you use to set your goals?
