Goal Setting

Goal setting is the most common performance enhancing technique in sport psychology. Goal setting improves performance by directing attention to the important elements of a skill, mobilizing efforts, prolonging persistence, and developing new learning strategies. It is a very powerful strategy that can improve confidence, motivation, injury recovery time, and others aspects of high performance – but, for so, it must be used correctly.

There are three types of goals: process goals, performance goals, and outcome goals. Process goals are task relevant strategies that help athletes improve actions one must execute to perform well. For example, adjusting your body position to cross a soccer ball. Performance goals focus on achieving standards of performance relative to previous performance. For example, reducing your personal time in a race. Finally, outcome goals are standards of performance that focus on the results of a competition. For example, win the gold medal.

Athletes must focus on process goals because they are under control of the athletes and can be adjusted. Performance goals are a good way of showing athletes their progress and can be used as motivators. Using outcome goals excessively can lead to anxiety in competition due the lack of control athletes have of these goals; after all, competition outcomes are dependent on the level of others competitors.

Goal setting should be SMART. SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Adjustable, Realistic, and Timely. Common problems in goal setting include: setting too many goals, setting only outcome goals, not believing in goal setting, and thinking goal setting is an immediate solution.

Be careful not to make these common mistakes and keep your goals SMART!