The New Year’s Resolution – Why Goals Fail and How to Set More Effective Goals

by Brian Baxter

Welcome to 2018.  Did any of you set a New Year’s Resolution (or 12)?  Have you kept them all?  How many of the have you already written off as impossible?  Have you ever wondered why New Year’s Resolutions so seldom stick?  Beside the fact that changing human behavior is hard, trying to change it in the days after staying out all night and having a little too much champagne, these are the main reasons:

1 – Too general

2 – Lack of support system

3 – Doesn’t account for unexpected events

4 – Too hard or unrealistic

5 – No consistent check in

These are the main reasons that people fail to achieve their goals.  The same can be said for team goals.  In sport psychology research and literature, goal setting is one of, if not the most consistently proven factors in facilitating performance.  However, when goals are not set properly, they are not as effective as they could be, and can even be harmful.

As a coach, setting effective goals for your team is crucial to their success. Click Here to Find Out ‘How To’ Set Effective Goals!

 Brian Baxter

Master’s Degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University

Contributor to FUNdamental SOCCER