How to Set Goals for the New Year

How to Set Goals for the New Year

The new year is almost here, which means it’s time to set those infamous New Year’s Resolutions! Most years, however, those resolutions quickly fall to the wayside. Either people haven’t thought them through entirely or they don’t have ways to determine if they’ve even met their goals. For kids, making resolutions might seem far more easygoing, but the new year can be a great opportunity to talk about goal setting in a practical way. Here are some tips for helping your child set — and conquer — their goals: 

Dream BIG with their goals

In a world where adults have lost touch with dreaming big, encourage your kid to fight the norm. Ask them what their biggest goal would be — and whatever they say (no matter how small or improbable it might seem to you) should be considered and weighed out. For some kids, a huge goal would be playing soccer or starring in a lead role on stage. Foster those huge dreams; don’t snuff them out before they can even take root. 

Unpack the “why” of that goal

Kids are so creative when it comes to goal setting, but the real meat-and-potatoes of it all is the why. “Why do you want to be the lead in the school play” can be for any number of reasons: wanting to become a better actor, for the “fame,” or for cool costumes they get to wear in a story they love. When pursuing their goal becomes hard, remind your children of their “why”s. Hopefully, that reminder should inspire them and motivate them to keep going even when it’s not easy. 

Break those goals into smaller steps.

You know the old saying: “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.” That thinking has helped people achieve great things seemingly overnight. What few people see behind the successes are the smaller steps they took to get there. Help your kid see that achieving their goal won’t be an overnight process; if it was easy, then more people would do it! 

Talk about the smaller steps your child needs to take to get from Point A to Point Z. If it’s becoming the lead in the school play, then maybe they need to get more comfortable with crowds or practice memorizing scripts. If they want to join the soccer team, then brushing up on drills and getting comfortable with a soccer ball could be smaller goals. Think of these like checkpoints on the way to the finish line.

Gather tools/a list of needs for the goal. 

Goals aren’t always easy to reach, and many people need help along the way! For the big goal your child sets, have them brainstorm any tools, people, or resources they need to make that goal a reality. This could include help from teachers, getting the right equipment, or signing up for classes that help them improve. 

This New Year, replace resolutions with practical goal setting, and see what your children are capable of doing. At Lake Forrest Prep, we’re passionate about challenging our students to achieve their dreams in smart ways — one step at a time. As one of Orlando’s leading private schools, we believe that building character is just as important as building up an education. To learn more about what Lake Forrest can do for your child, give us a call at 407-331-5144 or schedule a time to tour