Helping Your Children Set Goals

Well we've started the last term of the school year and I thought it would be great to start it off by setting some new goals for this term. We sat down at the school table and each thought of some goals that we would like to see ourselves accomplish by the Christmas school holidays. 

I don't believe that goals need to be something that add pressure to our lives, but rather something that gives us focus, are achievable and something that allows us to see progress with the things that we would like to develop in.

So how do you go about helping your children set some goals?

Here are my pointers ...

•  Ask them to think about what they really really want to learn about or get better at. There's no point in setting goals if it's something you're not really interested in doing. Your just setting yourself up for failure.

• Ask them to be specific in what they want to achieve. Instead of writing just 'piano', for example, ask them to write what they want to learn about the piano. Do they want to learn three new songs, practise their scales each day, etc?

• Make sure their goals are realistic and going to be achieveable. Remember if you start smaller, then they can see that they can reach their goals, and will progress to setting bigger ones in time! Reading 50 novels by the end of term, if your child is a slower reader, is probably not going to be an achievable (or fun) goal. Finishing 1-2 might suit that child better. Small goals are better than none at all.

• Write them out and have them in a place where they're easily seen. You know the saying 'out of sight, out of mind'. I find it much easier to stay focused on something if I see a visual reminder of it daily. My kids have a copy of their goals in their room, and in the school room. They're nothing fancy, just written on a piece of paper. If you want to make yours fancier, go ahead!

• Be encouraging. None of this will work or be enjoyable for your children (or you for that matter), if you don't encourage them along the way! Whether it be verbal, physical or a reward that you offer, encouragement gets results! 

• We are helping each other. My children's goals are different from each others, but we are going to help each other with them when we can. Any opportunity to teach our children to be helpful (even if it's not their interest), is good!

How do you help your kids set goals? Do you have any other suggestions to add to this list? Add them in the comments below!

People with goals succeed because they know where they're going.

 -Earl Nightingale.

I'll share with you my goals in the coming posts!