Setting Goals

Imagine you are in a ship on the Atlantic Ocean. As you look off into the horizon you see a storm heading your way. All of a sudden your ship is being tossed about by the waves. You are trying to navigate through the storm without loosing your heading. The motion of the ship causes you to drop your compass. You realize, ‘You have no idea where you are going.’ You fear you will be lost at sea. Many people live their lives just like the ship in the storm. They have no idea where they are going or how they are going to get there. They live each day one day at a time. They never plan for the future or have a destination. They are constantly being tossed about like the ship in the storm. In this paper you will find out why it is important to have a course, how to figure out what goals you want to set for yourself, and the difference between short-term and long-term goals.

            Why is it important to have a course? Go back to the ship at the start of this paper. What would happen to the ship, and its crew, it if it had no course? Would they run out of food? Would they eventually run out of water? What would happen if they could not find land? Do you believe they would be happy on their journey? The course we plan for ourselves helps us to determine: How we are going to take care of ourselves with basic necessities, it gives us something to strive for, and it helps us to enjoy our lives. If you have been living your life without any goals you are probably reading this paper going, ‘Great more Work!’ In the next paragraph, I will show you how to write your goals.

            In order to write your goals, you need to spend a few minutes thinking about your life. Where are you now? Where do you want to be in a few years? Write your answers down on a sheet of paper. An example: you work for a construction company. In a few years, you would like to be in a different field. You would like to be a Psychologist. Now that you know where you are and where you would like to be in a few years you can start to write your goals. The long term goal is going to be something you reach in a year, or two. A short-term goal is going to be one that you reach in a few weeks, or months. You should have more short-term goals then long-term goals. An example is: (short-term) I need to find out about going to college. I need to plan for a way to pay for college. I need to form a schedule so I can work, and go to college. (Long-term) I will graduate college as a Psychologist. It is okay if your goals are simple, or complex, as long as you have a plan. Do not worry if you need to make changes with any of your goals to get the desire that you want.

            Remember the ship at the beginning of the paper; it was being tossed about by the storm. As the compass fell overboard, you remember you have an extra compass down below. You travel to your quarters where you find it. The storm slowly starts to subside.  Without any fear or hesitation you figure out where you are. Then, you turn the ship to get back on course. Figuring out your goals, and sticking to them, is like finding your compass. They are important in directing us through life. Our life might have trials, ups and downs, but we will have a direction to point back to. As you go through life continuously look at your short-term and long-term goals. Essentially, you will be fine no matter what life throws at you, just like the ship in the storm.