Clear Goals, Solid Reasons: A Guide to Achieving Your Dreams

Knowing how to set goals for yourself or for others to continue developing and growing, to avoid stagnation, and to maintain high performance over time.

Setting a goal involves several steps.

A goal is a desire to succeed in being, becoming, or doing something, or to achieve a dream. This long-term goal must be accompanied by smaller short-term goals to help you reach it and give it meaning.

Short-term goals should be achievable and realistic for the individual. The key is to identify the right growth goals that help the individual focus their attention.

Distraction is the enemy of concentration. The closer the deadline for achieving the goal, the more important it is to eliminate distractions.

This helps you stay focused and concentrated, and prevents you from wasting your energy on distractions that hinder your progress.

The first step is to understand the issues related to the environment, in order to set a goal that reflects reality and, above all, is achievable and tailored to the individual. For example, setting goals based on the number of attempts, goals, or tackles are vague objectives.

This can vary depending on the type of game or event. Will we have possession of the ball or not? Will the time and weather allow for it? Does this meet the client’s needs? Etc.

This type of goal can lead to frustration and a loss of confidence because achieving them is beyond a person’s control, even though much of their commitment and focus is directed toward something invisible and unattainable.

It is also important to understand and take into account the time-related aspects of the person’s activities. This helps determine the frequency and the time required to achieve short-term goals.

The long-term goal must be consistent with the commitment made by the person who wishes to achieve it. The commitment in the present moment, the time dedicated to it, and the sacrifices made are a true measure of one’s resolve and present us with a reality.

I dream of…, I want to be…, but how much of my time do I actually give, spend, devote, and sacrifice to achieving that distant goal?

Take stock over a two-week period and calculate how much time you spend on it; that will tell you whether it’s truly important to you or whether it’s keeping you stuck in a fantasy.

What the vast majority of people do and give in terms of commitment is neither an effort nor a sacrifice. Doing your job, or what you’re asked to do, is a commitment, the norm, or simply a matter of taking responsibility.

Effort is what we do that only a small minority dares to do—or chooses not to do. It’s the extra steps we take to grow, rather than resting on our laurels or staying in our comfort zone.

Of course, this has to be realistic in terms of the stages involved. Some players want to be professionals even though they aren’t even starters on the youth team, while others want to play for the national team even though they aren’t key players at their own clubs.

Taking things one step at a time is much more realistic, as it helps build confidence and motivation.

The reason matters.

Setting a goal is helpful, but understanding and knowing why we want to be or have something is the best way to achieve it.

The "why" is often overlooked. Yet without a clear "why," we often get lost in this illusion—this false belief that we’re making sacrifices and putting in the effort to achieve that dream, that goal. If the "why" isn’t clear, we spend a great deal of our time lying to ourselves and, of course, lying to others.

Many young people are driven by a motivation that isn’t their own. It might be a parent’s motivation, or that of someone who once dreamed of achieving something but projects their own failure onto their son, daughter, or someone else.

That’s why you sometimes see people who feel out of place in a particular sport or field, only after realizing why—often after several years—that this desire to be or to do something wasn’t really theirs.

Can you be good or competent without a "why"? I think so; even without a "why" or a concrete goal, it’s possible to be good or successful. We’ll develop a process—or rather, a discipline—consciously or unconsciously, that allows us to be good. And if our goal is to please others, that becomes our "why."

This leads us to realize that having a clear purpose—coupled with clear goals, discipline, sacrifice, and the effort that keeps us focused on our objective—can help us achieve our dreams and goals.