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Arrive at least 5 minutes before your classes begin.
Your professors expect you to be ready to go when the lecture begins. This means not swaggering in 5, 10, 15 minutes late, and not prepared to join the class. It means having everything you need to take notes and participate in class on your desk before you will need them.
A good reputation will take you far. There's plenty of time between classes and after College Hour to get your butt into your seat before the professor begins talking. You will feel more relaxed, your mind will be open to learn, and you'll look good to the teacher. Promise.
(c)2011-16 Robyn King. All Rights Reserved.
You've set the goal to come to college, and you're pretty sure of where that goal ends. You're feeling excited and hopeful. You look forward to graduation. You can't wait until you're working in a job you love which pays well. You're absolutely certain that nothing is going to prevent you from getting to where you want to be!
Truth is, many students tell me they often feel overwhelmed, guilty or upset because their goal:
1) is harder than they expected
2) is so large they have no clue what to do next
3) no longer holds interest for them
4) makes them feel hopeless because the finish line seems light years away.
So they abandon their plans, and the student feels like a failure. The reality is that they are not failures; they simply hadn't been taught how to correctly plan the trip to get from point A to point B.
As a result of witnessing many, many people struggle with the same difficulty, I've developed a plan by which anyone can set goals concretely by using methods to:
- stay on track
- modify goals as interests and circumstances change
- know when to abandon a goal and establish a new one when necessary
- watch the progress they're making every day to get to the finish line
Using a travel-plan metaphor, I named this plan "GPS to the Finish Line: Mapping Your Goals the SMART Way" (c)2012-15.
STEP 1: Assessing the goal (Is it the right one for me?)
a. Choose a goal and write it down. Research says that when a goal is written down and displayed where it can be seen regularly, the likelihood that the goal will be reached increases more than goals that stay up in people's heads.
b. Using the SMART acronym (the part of the plan I did not develop), here's how to test whether your goal destination is right for you:
S = Specific
Goals need to be clearly defined and emphasize specifically what you want to happen. Ask yourself these questions: What am I going to do? Why is this important to do now? How am I going to do it?
For example, saying "I want to be happy" is too vague. "I want to buy my own home" is easy to identify.
M = Measurable
A goal needs to be measured in order to manage it. How will you know when you've reached your goal? Create a way to map your progress so you'll always know how close you are to the finish line.
A = Attainable
Can you reach your goal? Major goals set too far out in the future are the ones you won't stick to. Instead, break down the larger goal into many smaller tasks (what I call "Mile-markers")--they will be easier to complete, and you'll feel more motivated to keep plugging along.
R = Realistic
Take an honest look at your skills, talents, abilities, personal circumstances, where you live and financial resources. Based on this information, how likely is it that you have what it takes to reach your goal?
T = Time limit
Choosing a deadline on your goal gives you a clear target toward your Point B. When there is no specific time frame to follow, there's no urgency to start taking action immediately and you're likely to give up. The deadline you choose also must be measurable, attainable, and realistic.
In my next post, I offer a reality-check on what needs to be done next, and to pack your bags for the trip ahead.
QUESTION: Was there ever a goal that you had to give up? What about a goal that you persisted to the end?
Source: http://www.goal-setting-guide.com/goal-setting-tutorials/smart-goal-setting
All images courtesy of Google Images, unless otherwise noted.
(c)2012-15 Robyn Posson King
