Term 1 Goal Setting

Let’s set some goals.

To kick things off let’s do some Goal Setting – a pivotal part of your journey in this Emotional Intelligence course.

So let’s talk about SMART goals. SMART, in this case, is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

1. Specific: Sculpt your goal into a finely defined idea. So, rather than writing “Improve communication”, put down something more specific like “Improve active listening skills, especially with my partner”.
2. Measurable: Establish a way to track your journey. Ask yourself, “How will I know I’ve made it?” For example, you might decide to measure success by the frequency of conscious active listening practice every week.
3. Attainable: Ensure your goal is not just a castle in the sky but something truly achievable. Dreaming big is fantastic, but make sure your goal aligns with the realities of your situation. In our active listening example you might ask yourself is 1 practice a week attainable?
4. Relevant: Make your goal resonate with your core values and wider aspirations (which we will look at in a moment). If active listening is crucial for nurturing relationships, and this is important to you, then you’re onto a relevant goal.
5. Time-bound: Stamp a date on it. When do you hope to reach your goal? A timeline keeps you anchored and maintains your focus. Let’s whip up an example: “By the end of this term, I will polish my active listening skills, consciously practicing at least three times a week, to foster deeper bonds with my fellow learners.”

So with those ideas in place we’re going to get a bit introspective. Spend a moment soaking in what you genuinely want to nurture throughout this course. Are we talking increased self-awareness? More rewarding relationships? Or perhaps, a tougher mindset that’s all about resilience? One thing that helps is to review the 7 factors we use at BU: Physical Health , Family & Social , Romantic , Career , Financial , Mindset , and Self Esteem .

ACTION: Set yourself a SMART goal and write it in your Journal.

Using what you’ve read above, set yourself a smart goal that you want to reflect on this Term. Then in later sections as you are learning new tools and techniques you can ask yourself how you can apply them to the goal you have set.

TIP: Don’t agonise here trying to set the perfect goal. Lean into DONE over PERFECT. If you find yourself writing and re-writing to try to find the perfect SPECIFIC idea, then we can be ok with it not being PERFECTLY specific. Apply this same done over prefect mentality to each step. And remember, you can always revisit your goal as you start to learn more and more about yourself in the upcoming workshops.