Goal setting – the first step to using mental skills!

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One of my class assignments was to create a “user manual” for goal setting – the following is the text that made up the manual – a little dry in places – but I did get an “A” on the assignment. Take a look! There will be more posts in the future regarding goal setting! While the below was targeted towards sporting clays shooters, the concepts can be generalized to any activity at all!

What are Goals?

Quite simply, goals are a way of focusing on some standard of performance over a certain period of time (Gould, 2016).  Example might include losing 10 pounds over the summer, increasing the number of quartering type targets that can be broken in a row from four to eight in the next 2 months, or moving up two classes in the next year.

Why Set Goals?

We need to look no further than to Don Currie, Chief Instructor of the National Sporting Clays Association for inspiration.  In his book Mastering Sporting Clays, Don comments, “The students with whom I glean the greatest satisfaction are those who have definitive goals and the desire and commitment to achieve them” (Currie, 2018, p. 131). 

Support for Don’s statement come from years of sport psychology research.  When combining 36 studies together in order to see the total effect (called a meta-analysis in “research-speak”), Kyllo and Landers (1995) found that setting goals has significant impact on performance, especially when both long and short term goals were combined.  In their study of 338 prospective Olympic athletes, Burton, Pickering, Weinberg, Yukelson, and Weigand (2010) found a direct relationship between goal setting effectiveness and resulting confidence and performance.

Gould (2016) explained four ways in which goal setting impact performance under the mechanistic theory:

  1. Goals help to focus the athlete on important performance elements
  2. Goals help the athlete by providing encouragement to practice these important elements
  3. Goals help to provide motivation to expend continued effort in important areas
  4. Goals provide a learning framework – the athlete may discover new ideas that were not anticipated through the goal process

Finally, owner of the NFL New England Patriots, Robert Kraft, is often credited with commenting that “if you don’t know where you are going, any road will take you there” (Johnson & Gilbert 2004).  Goal setting can provide the roadmap to help find your way towards achieving what you want in sport, business and in life.

Types of Goals

Sport psychologists often discuss three types of goals as follows (Munroe-Chandler, Hall, & Weinberg, 2004):

  1. Process goals – goals that relate to improving a strategy or learning a new technique.  An example might be learning how to execute a diminishing lead shooting technique in the next two weeks.
  2. Performance goals – goals that relate to improving performance (could be team or individual) over previous efforts.  An example could be improving the number of times the same target was broken in a row from four to eight over a course of a month.
  3. Outcome goals – goals that are focused on winning.  Examples would be winning the class at the next shoot, or moving up to master class in a year. 

Munroe-Chandler, et al (2004) recommend that a blend of all three types be utilized together with a focus on process and performance goals over outcome goals, as process and performance goals generally fall more under the direct control of the athlete as opposed to outcome goals in which there can be many external affects that control the result.

Characteristics of Effective Goals

Gould (2016) provides guidance as to what constitutes good goals as follows:

  1. Goals should be measurable and specific
  2. Goals should be achievable and realistic but provide challenge at the same time
  3. Goals should have target dates for completion.  A blend of short and long term goals are most effective
  4. Goals should be split for those appropriate for practice, and those geared to performance
  5. Goals should be written using a positive tone as opposed to a negative tone
  6. Goals should include the roadmap or strategy for achieving the desired result
  7. Goals should always be put in writing
  8. When appropriate, goals should include group and individual goals.

S.M.A.R.T. goals

            An easy way to remember effective goals is to think about the word SMART (Voight, 2005):

            S = Specific (not just do my best – but what specific area will be improved)

            M = Measurable (use numbers when possible to determine if a goal is achieved)

            A = Achievable (the goal is within the athlete’s capabilities)

            R = Realistic (the goal is achievable while being challenging)

            T = Time-based (the goal has a target date)

Goal Mapping

Now that the athlete is clear on what goals are, the types of goals, and what makes an effective goal, she might be interested in knowing how to put them together into a system that is right for her.  Goal mapping helps to provide that structure in four steps as follows (Chase, 2013):

Step 1: Planning

In order to know how to set goals, the athlete should spend some time asking himself why he involved with his specific sport and what he hopes to gain from it.  Different athletes may have different agenda such as:

Athlete A:  I want to learn how to safely handle a shotgun and enjoy range time with my spouse on occasion, who is a more competitive shooter than I ever want to be.

Athlete B:  I want to be able to beat my buddy!

Athlete C:  I want to be able to move up through the amateur competitive ranks to master class.

Each of these athletes would probably develop different set of goals.

Step 2:  Setting

Based on the planning result, develop SMART goals combining process, performance, and outcome goals

Step 3:  Evaluation

Develop clear detailed strategies to support each goal.  For example, develop specific practice plans that can be used to direct activities for each practice session that directly relate to each goal so it is clear how the work that is being undertaken contributes to goal attainment.  Evaluate each goal on a periodic basis to assess actual to planned performance and adjust goals as required

Step 4:  Resetting

Return to step 1 to make sure the reason for pursuing the sport has not been lost, or perhaps has changed thus requiring adjustments to goals.

Conclusion

Goal setting is a proven way to drive performance improvement.  It is hoped that these tips are useful for each shooter.

References

Atkins, M. R., Johnson, D. M., Force, E. C., & Petrie, T. A. (2015). Peers, parents, and coaches, oh my! the relation of the motivational climate to boys’ intention to continue in sport. Psychology of Sport & Exercise, 16, 170-180. doi:10.1016/j.psychsport.2014.10.008

Burton, D., Pickering, M., Weinberg, R., Yukelson, D., & Weigand, D. (2010). The competitive goal effectiveness paradox revisited: Examining the goal practices of prospective Olympic athletes. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 22(1), 72-86. doi:10.1080/10413200903403232

Chase, M. (2012) In S. J. Hanrahan  & M. B. Andersen (Eds.). Routledge handbook of applied sport psychology: A comprehensive guide for students and practitioners (pp. 377-386). New York, NY: Routledge. ISBN: 9780415484640.

Currie, D. (2018). Mastering sporting clays. Lanham, MD: Stackpole Books.

Gould, D. (2016). Goal setting for peak performance. In J. Williams & V. Krane (Eds.). Applied sport psychology: Personal growth to peak performance (7th ed.) (pp. 188-206). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Johnson, C. A., & Gilbert, J. N. (2004). The psychological UNIFORM: Using mental skills in youth sport. Strategies: A Journal for Physical and Sport Educators, 18(2), 5-9. doi:10.1080/08924562.2004.10591116

Kyllo, L. B., & Landers, D. M. (1995). Goal setting in sport and exercise: A research synthesis to resolve the controversy. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 17(2), 117. Retrieved from https://journals.humankinetics.com/journal/jsep

Martin, N. J. (2014). Keeping it fun in youth sport: What coaches should know and do. Strategies, 27(5), 27-32. doi:10.1080/08924562.2014.938879

Munroe-Chandler, K. J., Hall, C. R., & Weinberg, R. S. (2004). A qualitative analysis of the types of goals athletes set in training and competition. Journal of Sport Behavior, 27(1), 58. Retrieved from https://www.highbeam.com/publications/journal-of-sport-behavior-p2171

Smith, R. E., & Small, F. L. (2002). Youth sports as a behavior setting for psychosocial interventions. In J. L. Van Raalte & B. W. Brewer (Eds.), Exploring sport and exercise psychology (2nd ed., pp. 341–371). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Voight, M. (2005). Integrating mental-skills training into everyday coaching. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 76(3), 38-47. Retrieved from https://www.shapeamerica.org/publications/journals/joperd/