How to Set and Achieve Your Goals
- Austin Tobelmann
- May 28, 2024
- 8 min read
We live in a day and age of rapid consumerism where any product is available at the click of a button. Where social media shows everyone’s great moments without all the work leading up to them. An age where it’s easy to get lost in the idea that instant gratification will come if we simply have a dream.
I have watched people tirelessly state that they want to achieve something great, only to come nowhere close to their goal because they couldn’t and/or wouldn’t properly commit.
This is why learning the right way to set goals is so important!
SMART Goals
The industry standard in goal setting is what are called SMART goals. An acronym that allows for setting specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goals.
Let’s create an example for running, where we have an athlete that has run 5:40 in the mile at the end of February. A SMART goal for them may be, “I want to break 5:30 in the mile by the end of the spring track season (mid-May).”
While this gives us something that is certainly realistic and achievable within a certain time frame, I think the athlete is not really setting themself up for success.
We need to take goal setting a couple steps further.
Make the ‘Little Things’ Your True Goals
Once we have our SMART goal in place, I like the challenge of listing at least 5 things we must do to achieve it.
The athlete from our example may notice they need to…
1) Put more focus into proper warm-ups and/or cool downs
2) Stretch more
3) Do more strength training
4) Get more sleep
5) Eat better throughout the day
Eventually the goal-setter should realize that these necessary steps now become daily goals. These must be achieved each day, or most days, in order to reach the final goal.
If the athlete can create the necessary habits to reach their SMART goal, they will undoubtedly achieve it…right?
Not quite. We need to introduce one final step to our goal setting agenda.
What Are You Willing to Sacrifice?
After asking what we need to do to achieve our goal, we need to think about all of the aspects of our lives, and if the choices we make will either help us or hurt us in terms of reaching our goal.
If our example athlete typically works through lunch, enjoys spending time with their family in the evening, has home projects to work on during the weekend, and likes to make time for their friends 1-2 times per week then they certainly won’t be able to do more strength training or eat better throughout the day. It’s simply unrealistic.
In another example, we can say our example athlete is a student. This athlete must see a teacher or catch up on work during lunches, rushes out of practice (or leaves early 2-3 times per week for a job or other extra-curricular activity), and stays up late doing homework because they are in multiple AP classes. Is it realistic that they will be able to create any or all of the small habits above? Not even close.
Our example athletes are now faced with determining what they can/are willing to sacrifice in order to create the proper habits.
Maybe our first example can explain to their family that they need to go to the gym twice per week and will miss that family time. Maybe they convince their friends to join them at the gym. Maybe they can find a way to eat lunch while working through that hour.
Maybe our student example decides to come in before school to meet with a teacher so they can eat a good lunch each day. Maybe they understand that they need to drop work 1-2 days per week and get rid of their other extracurricular activities. Maybe they develop a better understanding of time management so they can get better sleep.
Sidney Howard had it right when stating, “One half of knowing what you want is knowing what you must give up before you get it.”
Goals cannot simply be achieved by setting them and knowing what it takes to work for them. They can only be achieved by understanding your level of commitment to meeting them.
Are you willing to make the sacrifices? Are you willing to be disciplined? Are you able to make the time and space in your life to create the necessary habits?
Distinguishing Levels of Commitment…What ‘Level’ do You Truly Want to Reach?
I like to separate types of commitment into ‘average’, ‘good’, and ‘great’. Below is a brief definition of what each level of commitment looks like.
Average commitment means you are proficient at what you are doing, but maybe don’t want to make the sacrifices required to reach your true potential. You have other priorities in life and that is okay. But you love running and you would like to be at a fitness level that keeps you healthy and allows you to step into some local races and fare well. This is typically the type of athlete that wants to be at a ‘participatory’ or ‘recreational’ level and nothing more.
Good commitment is met with a desire to go after some bigger goals and achieve more than just a ‘recreational’ status. You are looking for new and better ways to improve your abilities. Maybe you are chasing some personal bests, or qualifying times for bigger races. You know what it takes to do well, and you are willing to do the right things to achieve your goals. You bring your best effort and attitude to each training session and try to focus as much as you can on the little things outside of these sessions. However, you have several other priorities in life, and you are not always willing to make sacrifices, even when those other priorities hurt your ability to improve your running performance.
Great commitment means that you want to do everything it takes to realize your true potential. You don’t just want to do the right things, but you want to do them in the right way and at the right time…all the time. Running and performance are your top priority, and you are willing to sacrifice almost anything else to make sure you are doing everything that it takes to achieve your goals.
Now let’s take a step back. Before you can sit down and set your goals, you will need to have a conversation with yourself about your level of commitment. Be honest…it’s not about what level of commitment you want to have, but which level you are truly willing to give at this moment in your life.
Let’s be real. If you have an average level of commitment, you shouldn’t be making goals to ‘earn a roster spot on a Division I college program’ or ‘qualify for the Elite section of the Boston Marathon’. Likewise, if you have a great level of commitment, you shouldn’t settle for setting goals to ‘run my first half marathon’ or ‘attain a junior varsity position by the end of the season’.
Practical Goal Setting
Now that we have the necessary steps of goal setting figured out, it’s time to sit down and make some goals. I highly suggest writing them down (not typing) and putting them somewhere you will regularly see them. It’s even better to put them somewhere that you look right after waking up in the morning and right before bed each night.
By now you have determined your level of commitment. We will start our goals by writing this level of commitment at the top of the page. This way you can hold yourself accountable to keep doing what is necessary to be at that level.
"My level of commitment is…"
Next, follow the steps below, writing each of them down.
"My end goal is …"
What do you truly want to achieve
"What will it take to do this …"
These are your small daily goals
"What aspects of life/choices that I make will hold me back from achieving my goals…"
"How will I make sacrifices to the aspects above in order to achieve my goals…"
Now pause and take a look at your above answers and make sure they make sense for achieving your goal. If you look at your answers and think that you cannot realistically achieve this goal, then start over and create a goal you can achieve.
Congratulations, you have just created your base-line goal! I see a base-line goal as something that should be achievable if you are able to do the little things and make the little sacrifices that you wrote down.
You should then repeat the steps above to create a ‘Level 2’ goal, and a ‘Reach’ goal. When creating your ‘Level 2' goal, imagine that you suddenly decide you want to make an extra sacrifice, or you focus a little more on mastering some of your smaller daily goals. When creating your ‘Reach’ goal, imagine that you have suddenly decided to make a jump in your level of commitment. Whether from Average to Good, or Good to Great. How would this jump change your goals? Don’t forget to put all of these goals where you can see them!
How Our Example Athlete Would Write Their Goals
Base-Line Goal
My level of commitment is Good.
My end goal is to break 5:30 in the mile by the end of spring track season.
What will it take to do this?
1) Put more focus into proper warm-ups and/or cool downs
2) Stretch more
3) Do more strength training
4) Get more sleep
5) Eat better throughout the day
What aspects of life/choices that I make will hold me back from achieving my goals?
1) Working through lunch
2) Family time every evening
3) Home projects on the weekends
4) Time with friends 1-2 nights per week
How will I make sacrifices to the aspects above in order to achieve my goals?
1) Eat while working at lunch
2) Spend 2 nights per week at the gym instead of family time
3) Use only 1 day per weekend for home projects
4) Invite my friends to the gym when I go
Level 2 Goal
My level of commitment is Good.
My end goal is to break 5:25 in the mile by the end of spring track season.
What will it take to do this?
1) Put more focus into proper warm-ups, cool downs, mobility, and core
2) Roll out and stretch more
3) Progress strength training
4) Set a better sleep environment for myself
5) Proper nutrition and hydration
What aspects of life/choices that I make will hold me back from achieving my goals?
1) Working through lunch
2) Family time every evening
3) Home projects on the weekends
4) Time with friends 1-2 nights per week
How will I make sacrifices to the aspects above in order to achieve my goals?
1) Manage time better so that I can eat at lunch instead of working
2) Spend 3 nights per week at the gym instead of family time
3) Use only 1 day per weekend for home projects
4) Invite my friends to the gym when I go
Reach Goal
My level of commitment is Great.
My end goal is to break 5:20 in the mile by the end of spring track season.
What will it take to do this?
1) Put proper effort, attitude, and focus into every aspect of a training session
2) Roll out and stretch more before and after training sessions
3) Perfect my form in all mobility, stretching, core, plyometric, and strength motions
4) Go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day
5) Proper nutrition and hydration all throughout the day
What aspects of life/choices that I make will hold me back from achieving my goals?
1) Working through lunch
2) Family time every evening
3) Home projects on the weekends
4) Time with friends 1-2 nights per week
How will I make sacrifices to the aspects above in order to achieve my goals?
1) Plan nutritious breakfasts and lunches and spread my work out between them
2) Work with my coach to make sure I am using proper form and can progress my strength training
3) Use only 1 day per weekend for home projects, and the other day to rest/recover while spending time with family
4) Convince my friends to start running with me!
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