4 - set goals 31-40

8/8/2019 4 - Set Goals 31-40

1/10 2011 Caliornia Community Colleges Chancellors Ofce

Set Goals

Think about where you are right now. What year are you in school? What is coming

up next? Where would you like to be in 6 months? Where would you like to be

next year?

Quickly jot down 5-10 goals that would help you move orwarddont worry i

you dont know how youre going to accomplish them or i you dont have the

inormation you need yet. In act one o your goals might be researching the

inormation you need to know to set better goals.

Some sample goals might be:

n

Register or next semesters classes.n Take a class in ____________________.

n Write a basic rsum.

n Search the web or possible employers.

n Read about careers that would benet rom my skills in __________________.

1. Identiy your current goals.

Take your top three goals (career-related or not) and write them onsticky tabs. Place them everywhere -- on your mirror, on your computer,

etc. As you go through the day, think about whether what you are

doing is moving you toward one o those goals. I not, stop and

think. Is it worth the time youre spending doing this non-goal-related

activity? Only you know the answer.

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Set Goals

2. Watch out or goal destroyers.

Take a look at the list and see i any o the goal-destroyers apply to

you. What is one step you could take to reduce or eliminate one o

the destroyers? Do it today

Its easy to get side-tracked in the job search process even i youve set your goals and

are trying to move orward. Take a look at some o these potential goal-destroyers:

n Examine your relationships: Do you have riends or acquaintances who take up

a lot o your time while giving back little?

n Do you have items around that need to be repaired and cant be used?

n Do you have a stack o bills waiting to be paid?

n Are you watching a lot o TV?

n Spending a lot o time surng the web?

n

Are you eating too much ast ood?n When is the last time you got a ull nights sleep?

n Have you put o exercising?

So, can you eel your energy draining away as you read this list? Thats the point.

All o these activities or events can make you tired mentally beore you ever take a

step to do anything positive.

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Set Goals

3. Eliminate unrealistic goals.

Review your goals to make sure they dont all into any o these

traps. Its OK to work at your parents company or want to earn a

lot o money; just make sure you have selected the goal and move

toward it with a exible mindset.

I youre not achieving some o your goals, it might be because the goals themselves

arent working or you. Watch out or some o these common unrealistic goals:

n Too-distant goals: In 10 years I want to be a doctor. This is a wonderul goal,

but the outcome is ar o and the amount o work you will have to do between

now and then can seem overwhelming. Break this distant goal into smaller

time increments, such as each semester.

n Media-infuenced goals: My avorite show is Law & Order; Im going to be a

lawyer. Make sure you know the real story and not the media version. I youve

done your research, you know whether this career is really or you.

n Parent-infuenced goals:My dad will be really pleased i I work or his

company. Parents are a great source o career inormation and inspiration, but

be sure its what you want to do as well.

n Money-oriented goals: I must have a job that earns at least $50,000. While

theres nothing wrong with setting monetary goals, your may arbitrarily limit

your options or a rst job.

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Set Goals

An intention is dierent rom a goal in that goals tend to be specic, with clearly

outlined plans or achievement. An intention is more o a guiding orce or an

attitudeit is a statement o how you would like things to be without necessarily

clariying the details or making it happen. It is a statement o yesmeaning

that you are open to possibilities related to your intention. Intentions allow you to

ocus on ideas and ways youd like to live your lie, and set the stage mentally or

more directed planning i needed.

Intentions are particularly helpul when you dont know yet exactly what you want

or you want something, but dont know how youre going to make it happen.

Sample intentions you might set related to a job search could be:

n I am seeking a great summer opportunity.

n I intend to learn something new today about the eld o ______________.

n I intend to calmly go through the job search process.

n I want my job search to go smoothly.

4. Identiy your intentions.

Instead o writing goals, try writing some intentions that describe

the experiences you are open to.

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Set Goals

When you eel surrounded by insurmountable problems, try rephrasing them into

goals and look or possible solutions.

Think o each problem you encounter as a temporary hurdlesomething which

may slow you down but which you can conquer.

For instance, maybe one problem youre acing is that you dont know who the

employers might be or your eld o interest. So since your problem is you cant

identiy potential employers, then thats your goal: Im going to identiy 10

possible employers.

Now its just a matter o brainstorming some ideas or achieving that goal.

Maybe you will start with a visit to your career center or some assistance, or

maybe you will contact someone working in your eld o interest, or perhaps

you will go online and search or jobs in your eld o interest and notice what

organizations are hiring.

5. Use problems as the start o solutions.

Identiy a problem youve had with your job search. Can you turn it

into a goal? Now, start identiying some possible solutions or steps

to achieving the goal you just created. Do one step today.

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Set Goals

Whether youre currently in your rst year o higher education or it is behind you,

take a ew minutes to review what you learned.

n Start by writing down the courses you took.

Do you recall any particular skills or knowledge you acquired through them?

For instance, did you learn to conduct research, or write a paper, or use a

spreadsheet?

n Did you acquire new experiences such as a job, volunteer activity, or join a

student organization?

What did you learn rom those experiences? Did you take on a leadership role?

Did you do anything that you might want to put on a rsum?

n What challenges did you ace and overcome?

n What was your best accomplishment during the year?

6. Analyze your rst year o higher education.

Note any important eatures to your rst year o schoolwhat

would you tell an employer about your rst year o school?

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Set Goals

Whether youre in the second year o your program currently or already nished it,

be sure you analyze it or all the value it has provided you.n Start by writing down the courses you took.

Do you recall any particular skills or knowledge you acquired through them?

For instance, did you learn to conduct research, or write a paper, or use a

spreadsheet?

n Did you acquire new experiences such as a job, volunteer activity, or join a

student organization?

What did you learn rom those experiences?

Did you take on a leadership role?

Did you do anything that you might want to put on a rsum?

n What challenges did you ace and overcome?

n What was your best accomplishment during the year?

If you havent completed your second year of schooling yet, consider what

courses you would like to take and what experiences you would like to acquire.

7. Analyze your second year o higher education.

Note any signicant growth in your experiences, skills, or knowledge

that you might want to mention to an employer. I you havent complet-

ed your second year, you still have time to set some goals or what youd

like to accomplish.

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Set Goals

8. Develop your long-term goals.

Identiy one o your long-term goals and write down one or two

things you could do now to move toward the successul completion

o that goal.

Long term goals take at least a semester to completeand maybe a year or more.

They are important goals to set, but because they are so ar in the uture its hard to

stay ocused on them.

Sometimes theres a tendency to think oh thats way in the uture- I dont need to

think about it now. But the truth is that you will nd your long-term goals more

achievable in the uture i you start working on them now.

For instance, maybe you have a goal o ultimately going to law school. While that

may be many years away, your actions now (such as the classes you select and the

grades you get) can have a great inuence not only on whether youll get into lawschool, but which law schools you will qualiy or.

So that you dont get caught in the ar-away goal: consider setting up an enabling

goal. An enabling goal is a short-term goal that will help you achieve the long

term goal. So, or instance, i you are thinking o becoming a lawyer someday,

maybe your enabling goal this semester would be to take a writing class so you can

improve your writing skills (since lawyers write a lot).

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Set Goals

9. When your goals changemove on.

Think about the goals you started school with.

Are they still valid?

Are you still pursuing the same career, major or classes that you started with?

I not, what have you switched to? How have your goals changed?

Make sure youre not clinging to outdated goals.

One o the dangers o goal-setting is the tendency to assume that once youve set a

goal it is somehow set in stone and that its a bad thing to change it. Nothing could

be more untrue.

Goals are meant to breatheto change and adapt along with you.

As you move toward your goals, you oten learn more about them and collect inor-

mation that helps you make better decisions.

At some point you may learn that the goal is no longer valid or you or whatever reason.

At that point, theres no need to stick with itjust decide whats next instead. I thegoal no longer works or you remove it.

Make sure any list o goals you created hasnt gotten stale or out o date. Updating

your goals regularly is a good habit to get into.

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Set Goals

10. Surround yoursel with ideal tools to achieve your goals.

Make it easy to attain your goals.

Lets say your goal is to play gol by the end o the year. Youve taken a step by

signing up or a physical education course in gol. Now what?

Try taking a look around your room. What in your room (or your close personal

space) supports that goal? Do you have gol clubs? Are they readily available?

I you have to look around and dig or the items that you need, you are less likely to

move orward on your goals.

Take a look at the three goals you identied previously (see card 1 in the

goal setting set).

n What items do you need to move toward achieving those goals?

n Do you have them?

n Are they easily accessible?

n What changes could you make to make them more accessible and

increase the odds that you will use them?

4 - set goals 31-40

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