SMART Goals for Teens
Raising Goal-Getters in Your Homeschool: A Parent’s Guide to Building Lifelong Success
Goal setting is an effective and time-tested method for making progress towards an objective. Goals reflect our deepest aspirations; formulating these aspirations as objectives to be accomplished helps us muster the motivation needed to make our dreams a reality. Most people have set goals at one time or another, but you might be shocked to find out how few accomplish them. A 1988 study by the University of Scranton famously concluded that only 8% of people who set goals manage to achieve them. This means that a whopping 92% of people fail to achieve their goals!
It is important that our children learn how to be effective goal-setters for success in life. After all, we want them to accomplish their objectives in school, work, and personal relationships. Today, we will discuss how to set goals effectively so you can guide your children towards a life of accomplishment.
Effective Goal Setting with the SMART Method
Why do so many people fail to attain their goals? A significant factor is that people don’t know how to set goals effectively. They commonly express their goals in terms that are far too general to be effective. Kids, for example, may resolve to “pray more,” “be a better student,” or “get in shape.” While these goals are all admirable, their generality sets the child up for failure. Parents should help children learn to define their goals in more specific and measurable terms so that progress can be made and evaluated.
Effective goals are sometimes referred to as SMART, which is an acronym for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound. Goals that share these five characteristics are effective goals—that is, more likely to be attained. Let’s review each of these five characteristics to better understand how we can help our children set effective goals.
Specific
Goals must be clean and unambiguous, stating precisely what should be accomplished. If you don’t know what you are aiming for, how will you know how to hit it? For example, “I will do better in Spanish” is too vague. A more specific goal would be “I will commit an extra 15 minutes each day to reviewing my Spanish vocabulary.”
Measurable
A goal must be trackable so that one can see whether or not they are making progress. Conversely, a goal that can’t be tracked can never be attained. For example, “I will learn to love reading” is not a trackable goal. How can you measure when you “love” something sufficiently? Therefore, progress towards this goal cannot be quantified. To make this goal measurable, it could be reformulated as, “I will read one new book every month.” Worded this way, you now have a way to tell if you are making progress or not.
Attainable
Goals should be realistically achievable by the person setting them. This is important, as achieving a goal reinforces commitment and encourages people to continue persevering towards their objectives. Some goals can never be achieved, no matter how lofty. For example, “I will please everyone.” This is unattainable, as nobody can please everyone all the time. A better goal would be, “I will not yell at my siblings today.”
Relevant
A goal is relevant when it connects with your child’s current stage of life, interests, or long-term aspirations. For example, suppose your daughter wants to become a veterinarian someday. A relevant goal would be: “I will volunteer at the local animal shelter for two hours every Saturday this month.” This goal ties directly into her passion, offers real-world experience, and reinforces her long-term vision. Relevance helps children see how today’s small steps fit into a bigger picture, making the effort feel meaningful and worthwhile.
Time-Bound
Goals ought to contain estimated timelines for completion. End dates create motivation to get a goal completed. For example, suppose your daughter in Taekwondo wants to achieve a green belt. But achieve a green belt by when? Without a timeline for completion, this goal is vague. If it takes too long, your daughter may lose momentum. It is better if her goal were reformulated as, “I will earn my Taekwondo green belt by the end of July.” Now she can establish momentum by establishing pacing to attain the goal by the completion date.
A Few Pointers on Goal Setting
Some words of advice as you help your children formulate their goals:
First, goals should be written down. This helps with clarity and focus, and the act of writing concretizes the goal as something more than just a vague aspiration. So, encourage your children to write down their goals and post them somewhere visible, like on the refrigerator, on a mirror, or in a place where they will see them regularly. They could also journal their goals. However, journaling must be a regular practice for that to work.
Second, you should err on the conservative side of goal setting in terms of what might be realistically achieved by your child. Lofty goals may feel good and sound inspirational, but your children will become disappointed when progress is slow. Setting goals conservatively enhances the likelihood of achievement, which will energize your children and enthuse them to challenge themselves more as they create new sets of goals.
Helping your children master the art of goal setting with the SMART method gives them the tools to turn their dreams into reality. By guiding them to craft goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound, you’re equipping them with the tools to succeed in school, relationships, and beyond. With your support, they can become effective goal-setters, paving the way for a lifetime of accomplishment and growth.
In Closing
Proactively teaching your teen to set SMART goals is more than a productivity tool—it’s a life skill. With your guidance, they’ll learn how to turn dreams into action, building confidence, resilience, and a lifelong habit of purposeful growth.
What are your thoughts on this topic? To share your tips, experiences, and questions, you can join me and other homeschoolers in the Homeschool Connections Facebook Group. I would love to hear from you!
