Why set goals?

By Coach Ernest Allen Founder of Atlas Pro Training LLC

This is something that we all use to give our wants and dreams a destination. I first learned about goal setting was my sophomore year in high school during a black student union meeting. Todd Lyght from the University of Notre Dame was invited to speak to us about his experience and to give us some tips and advice on how to set yourself up for success. The steps that he used were simple and straight to the point. At the time Notre Dame was the top college football organization in the country. One of the first topics he covered was goal setting and his system for setting his goals. Being a guy who loves examining systems and processes this was right up my alley!

My mind was wide open and ready to absorb everything he was saying, so much so as I am writing this post I can picture the setting and see him speaking. What he told us has stuck with me for my entire life and has morphed into an obsession of sorts, where I have 4 notebooks dedicated to my goal-setting system ( you can read one of my past blog posts Trust the Process…. Even if you Don’t) I cover this briefly within my rambling about Cam Newton and various other subjects, check it out I wrote during a pretty crazy time in my life.

But back to my introduction to Goal setting; Todd Lyght said that he used a simple formula to set his goals, he would take out a sheet of paper and write down 3 goals he what he wanted to accomplish, I believe that he did this at the beginning of the year or at specific times like before football season. He would then post his goals up in a place where he could see them every day so that he would be reminded of them and it would motivate him during tough times and give him purpose and something to shoot for. This system worked for him very well check out his bio. So that night I wrote down three goals that I had been telling people about since my first day in entering high school as a freshman, which was to graduate and earn a college scholarship. I had a few of my buddies laugh at me but their laughter did not deter me, I truly believed that I was going to make my goals happen! After I wrote my goals out on a yellow sheet of paper from a legal pad, I placed them on the back of my bedroom door so I could see them every day when I woke up and every night before I went to bed. This practice of goal setting helped me achieve a number of goals that were milestones in my life and have helped me get through some tough times.

The process of goal setting is so valuable in my opinion and should be a part of everyone’s process if they want to attain anything they value. I ask ( and it is an informal requirement ) all my clients to write down Three goals they want to achieve from their training program, that can be applied to their lives and lead to a long-term behavioral change, which will help them maintain a healthy lifestyle. Some of my clients embrace it and some don’t, and the one thing that I have noticed the, my clients, that imbalance goal setting they are more successful and the process is smoother.

All goals should be based on the S.M.A.R.T. principle":

• S-pecfic

• M-easurable

• A-ttainable

• R-elevant

• T-ime Bound