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This past weekend I enjoyed watching the Winter X-Games like I do every year J I’m always amazed at the level of difficulty of tricks, the amount of work that must go into preparing, the dedication, and how much fun the participants have! The X-Games also remind me of the power and relevance of goal setting, and how it is never too early to talk about the importance of acting purposefully. Watching 14 yr-old Ayumu Hirano medal in the Super Pipe yesterday drove this point home even more.
I showed the kids highlights from some of Hirano's footage and they were amazed! So much so that they got out of their seats and began imitating him :) Then we talked about how they thought Ayumu got to where he is today and ultimately decided that "hard work and a plan" were the culprits. It was great to see the boys and girls excited about what making goals can lead to.
Setting goals is the first step to achieving them and achieving goals is one of the first steps to success. Having a clear and focused idea of what you’re after is key- essentially placing significant importance outcomes. However, the journey toward that outcome is equally important. It’s especially important for kids because it’s easy to get overwhelmed by concentrating on where you're going instead of how you're going to get there.
It’s critical to set goals for a number of reasons including getting used to thinking/planning ahead, learning to persevere through obstacles, and also to grow to accept failure. The more adaptive students become to the process, the healthier their self-esteem is as they get older. That, and thinking about the future becomes much more fun!
I'm looking forward to discussing your child's progress regarding the goals they set in our previous conferences :)
