What is a goal?
For as long as I can remember, adults have always emphasized goal-setting.
"Set an attainable goal," or "set a short-term and a long-term goal!"
It's one of those pieces of advice you have heard so may times and for so long that you semi-internalize it and semi-take it for granted. I've known I should be goal-setting, but I also subconsciously deem the advice overdone and, thus, ignore it.
Well, finally I "re-discovered" goal-setting in a more nuanced and personalized way.
I set a goal, but then I break it down into small, consistent habits that are concrete. I approach these habits incrementally.
For example, I decided that I would like to be athletic/fit/as healthy as possible by my trip to Greece in July. So, my first incremental sub-section was to start exercising for at least 30 minutes every day during the month of April (allowing myself to take a day off every once in a while if I felt I needed it). It took the guess work and the excuses out of the whole "work out routine" hurricane, allowing me to ease into a healthier lifestyle without it feeling forced.
Next, I started buying 90% non-processes goods from the grocery store, only allowing packed things to be things like canned beans, peanut butter, or dry quinoa. This set me onto a path of eating whole foods. By getting an abundance of healthy groceries, I incentivized cooking healthy meals (don't want to waste food!) and disincentivized eating out at unhealthy restaurants or impulse buying french fries when out with friends. I am not so strict to the point of restriction, because I do not want to fall into unhealthy habits of letting myself get hungry or avoiding little treats at all costs—I still want to enjoy life! An Astle girl NEEDS her chocolate. Trust me.
Another strategy I tacked on was slowly swapping out my typical meals for healthier options. For breakfast, instead of having oatmeal with maple syrup, a ton of peanut butter, and some banana and granola, I would have unsweetened oatmeal with berries and a tablespoon of almond butter. Alternately, I could make a green smoothie with lots of frozen fruit and fresh spinach.
Again, I want to emphasize that restriction is not on the table for me. I have things in moderation, try to feed my cravings in a healthy way, and stop eating when I feel full.
This brings me to my third sub-section of my total goal, which is to eat consistently throughout the day! During the school year, I would often have four hours of class (sometimes six) back-to-back, which made it impossible to have three to six balanced meals every day. I would grab granola bars, trail mix, and snacks to tide me over, but then I would be ravenous when I got home, which could lead to unhealthy decisions! Now that I have more time on my hands, I always try to make sure I am satiated so that I don't get as many unhealthy cravings.
As you can see, I have put a lot of thought into each of these sub-sections. This has allowed me to concretely work towards the overarching idea of leading a healthy, active lifestyle including a balanced diet and exercise regimen. As you know, changing your lifestyle is all about changing habits, which, in my experience, can only be developed incrementally through consistency.
Another example I will give is the goal of attaining higher grades in school during my second semester. This seems to be something most students want, and it is difficult because there is not an exact formula that works for each individual. People have different intrinsic and extrinsic motivators that are effective for them, and different strategies for better learning and performing better on assignments. Again, let me brake down the goal into its sub-sections.
First, I set the tangible habit of only saying yes to one party/nighttime outing every two weeks. I knew this strategy would work well for me because it would allow me to maintain the steady sleep pattern I need in order to have mental clarity and really focus when it came time to study. It was challenging for me, because I love socializing, but I reminded myself it would lead to the outcome I wanted.
Second, I made it a priority to attend every lecture and ESPECIALLY every tutorial. This is because tutorials usually make up minimum 5% of a class grade. Though this is a small margin, it can shift you up or down if you are on the cusp of the grade you want (i.e. from a 79 to an 80, which is an A at University of Toronto). I also needed to do this because I am a strong auditory learner. Simply by being present in class or tutorial and listening to the material/pondering it, I absorb the information like a sponge. I knew that for myself, reading over the slides outside of class would not give me the deep understanding of the material I needed to write A papers or ace exams.
Third, I forced myself to e-mail teachers/TAs & go to office hours whenever I deemed it necessary. This is a habit I am still working on, as it can be intimidating or you might not even know where to begin when starting a conversation with a professor. I found this strategy to be particularly effective for allowing my TAs to assign a face to the name and to realize I had gumption! I believe this helped them favor me in the grading process, rather than work against me (*look up the "halo effect"—we learned about it in Social Psychology).
I could go on and on about the nuances of this goal, but the point I'd like to get across is that this translation of a long-withstanding goal into smaller, concrete steps helped me make it a reality. It is so rewarding to see the work pay off, and I certainly do not regret the time I gave up partying with friends or the times I could have skipped the gym and laid in ed watching documentaries on Netflix.
I know, I know. You're probably thinking "Um, duh. This is all kind of obvious!" But for me, this "goal advice," if you will, never really settled into place until now. Age twenty. Twenty years of my life and I am only just now understanding how to attain my goals. *sigh*
Thank you for reading, and I hope you are having a beautiful spring! (It has been lovely here in Toronto—balmy, sunny, and misty/rainy on some days).
A bientôt,
Charlotte
P.S. Here is some vegan food inspiration from my Instagram:
"Set an attainable goal," or "set a short-term and a long-term goal!"
It's one of those pieces of advice you have heard so may times and for so long that you semi-internalize it and semi-take it for granted. I've known I should be goal-setting, but I also subconsciously deem the advice overdone and, thus, ignore it.
 |
| Me, ignoring goal-setting in the name of self care |
Well, finally I "re-discovered" goal-setting in a more nuanced and personalized way.
I set a goal, but then I break it down into small, consistent habits that are concrete. I approach these habits incrementally.
For example, I decided that I would like to be athletic/fit/as healthy as possible by my trip to Greece in July. So, my first incremental sub-section was to start exercising for at least 30 minutes every day during the month of April (allowing myself to take a day off every once in a while if I felt I needed it). It took the guess work and the excuses out of the whole "work out routine" hurricane, allowing me to ease into a healthier lifestyle without it feeling forced.
Next, I started buying 90% non-processes goods from the grocery store, only allowing packed things to be things like canned beans, peanut butter, or dry quinoa. This set me onto a path of eating whole foods. By getting an abundance of healthy groceries, I incentivized cooking healthy meals (don't want to waste food!) and disincentivized eating out at unhealthy restaurants or impulse buying french fries when out with friends. I am not so strict to the point of restriction, because I do not want to fall into unhealthy habits of letting myself get hungry or avoiding little treats at all costs—I still want to enjoy life! An Astle girl NEEDS her chocolate. Trust me.
Another strategy I tacked on was slowly swapping out my typical meals for healthier options. For breakfast, instead of having oatmeal with maple syrup, a ton of peanut butter, and some banana and granola, I would have unsweetened oatmeal with berries and a tablespoon of almond butter. Alternately, I could make a green smoothie with lots of frozen fruit and fresh spinach.
Again, I want to emphasize that restriction is not on the table for me. I have things in moderation, try to feed my cravings in a healthy way, and stop eating when I feel full.
This brings me to my third sub-section of my total goal, which is to eat consistently throughout the day! During the school year, I would often have four hours of class (sometimes six) back-to-back, which made it impossible to have three to six balanced meals every day. I would grab granola bars, trail mix, and snacks to tide me over, but then I would be ravenous when I got home, which could lead to unhealthy decisions! Now that I have more time on my hands, I always try to make sure I am satiated so that I don't get as many unhealthy cravings.
 |
| Yummy avocado toast from Early Bird Cafe in Toronto, ON |
As you can see, I have put a lot of thought into each of these sub-sections. This has allowed me to concretely work towards the overarching idea of leading a healthy, active lifestyle including a balanced diet and exercise regimen. As you know, changing your lifestyle is all about changing habits, which, in my experience, can only be developed incrementally through consistency.
Another example I will give is the goal of attaining higher grades in school during my second semester. This seems to be something most students want, and it is difficult because there is not an exact formula that works for each individual. People have different intrinsic and extrinsic motivators that are effective for them, and different strategies for better learning and performing better on assignments. Again, let me brake down the goal into its sub-sections.
First, I set the tangible habit of only saying yes to one party/nighttime outing every two weeks. I knew this strategy would work well for me because it would allow me to maintain the steady sleep pattern I need in order to have mental clarity and really focus when it came time to study. It was challenging for me, because I love socializing, but I reminded myself it would lead to the outcome I wanted.
Second, I made it a priority to attend every lecture and ESPECIALLY every tutorial. This is because tutorials usually make up minimum 5% of a class grade. Though this is a small margin, it can shift you up or down if you are on the cusp of the grade you want (i.e. from a 79 to an 80, which is an A at University of Toronto). I also needed to do this because I am a strong auditory learner. Simply by being present in class or tutorial and listening to the material/pondering it, I absorb the information like a sponge. I knew that for myself, reading over the slides outside of class would not give me the deep understanding of the material I needed to write A papers or ace exams.
Third, I forced myself to e-mail teachers/TAs & go to office hours whenever I deemed it necessary. This is a habit I am still working on, as it can be intimidating or you might not even know where to begin when starting a conversation with a professor. I found this strategy to be particularly effective for allowing my TAs to assign a face to the name and to realize I had gumption! I believe this helped them favor me in the grading process, rather than work against me (*look up the "halo effect"—we learned about it in Social Psychology).
I could go on and on about the nuances of this goal, but the point I'd like to get across is that this translation of a long-withstanding goal into smaller, concrete steps helped me make it a reality. It is so rewarding to see the work pay off, and I certainly do not regret the time I gave up partying with friends or the times I could have skipped the gym and laid in ed watching documentaries on Netflix.
I know, I know. You're probably thinking "Um, duh. This is all kind of obvious!" But for me, this "goal advice," if you will, never really settled into place until now. Age twenty. Twenty years of my life and I am only just now understanding how to attain my goals. *sigh*
Thank you for reading, and I hope you are having a beautiful spring! (It has been lovely here in Toronto—balmy, sunny, and misty/rainy on some days).
A bientôt,
Charlotte
P.S. Here is some vegan food inspiration from my Instagram:
Char...
ReplyDeleteI can't help but smile when I see this photo of
you having a manicure...
you are such a ham...
I remember when you didn't look at the camera for
a camera...Eddie told you one day that when you look
at the camera, you are so pretty...and I can see here
that you heard what dear Eddie said...he was absolutely
crazy about you. and so am I!
Looking forward to seeing you next week, for a special
time for Eddie.