Techniques for Establishing Valid Goals

In order for an individual to make sure that his or her studying is carried out in the most effective way possible, it is essential for each individual to establish a series of study goals that the individual wishes to accomplish. However, it is also important for an individual to make sure that each goal that he or she sets is actually a valid goal. In other words, an individual needs to make sure that each of his or her goals is attainable and it will be possible for the individual to tell when each goal has actually been accomplished. Each study goal that an individual sets should describe the objective the individual wants to accomplish and the timeframe in which the individual wants to accomplish that objective, so the individual has a set deadline. It may seem unnecessary or excessive to set a deadline for every goal, but a set deadline for each goal can actually be an essential study tool as it helps motivate the individual to actually make sure that each goal is accomplished in a timely fashion.

On top of setting a deadline for each goal, there are several other factors that an individual should consider in order to make sure that each goal is an effective study tool. First, it is important for an individual to make sure that each goal that he or she sets is actually achievable. In other words, each goal should be something that the individual can realistically accomplish in the timeframe that the individual has established. For example, studying a chapter each night would be an achievable goal in most cases while studying an entire textbook in one night would be a ridiculous goal that virtually no one would be able to achieve. Secondly, for each goal that an individual sets, the individual should be able to measure how close that individual is to actually achieving that goal and whether or not the individual has achieved that goal already. For example, if an individual decides to study a chapter each night, that individual can measure his or her progress by determining how many pages are left in the chapter that he or she is studying. Finally, the individual should be ready to change any of his or her goals if the situation changes and the individual can no longer attain a specific goal because that particular goal is now unrealistic.