Goals

Goals from a Viking perspective means being a good merchant

In the ancient Viking rules, we find §3 Be a Good Merchant with the sub-items

 * Find out what the market needs 
 * Don’t promise what you can’t keep 
 * Don’t demand overpayment 
 * Arrange things so that you can return

Defining goals and objectives is crucial. Without them you are not likely to be successful, you will be disappointed, run out of time, energy and/or money before you reach your success. A good goal definition keeps you focused. The goals define WHAT you want to reach and the objectives describe the steps HOW you will work towards the goal. Goals and objectives must have a purpose and must be measurable. You and other people must be able to assess whether the goal/objective was reached at a certain point in time and to what extent.

If you listen to successful people they have a clear vision of their goal and they have focus. A clear vision is best achieved with an active mental image of the goal. Visualization is an important tool that can help you motivate yourself and focus better to achieve your goals. The quality of goals can be measured with the SMART criteria.

Types of Goals

In psychology there is a whole theory on goal setting, realization, motivation and positive feelings. Goals serve as regulators of human actions and specific goals give better results than vague, general goals. Difficult goals give better results than easy goals.

Process goals and Performance goals

Different overlapping terms are used to identify different goals. In general the division that is agreed on is between:

 * 1. Process goals, also named Creative goals or Mastery goals
 * 2. Performance goals, also named Productive goals.

Process -, Creative -, Mastery goals focus on improvement of performance or behaviour in terms of novel, appropriate. These goals focus on effort, stamina, change, strategy, actions in order to reach the goal. The person wishes to improve him/herself and assesses against previous mastery.

Performance -, Productive goals focus on single outcome, standards coming from elsewhere. The goals have a clearly defined outcome, level, or time limit. The person wishes to do better than someone else, to win from someone else etc.

In general process goals give people more satisfaction than performance goals. If you do not reach your performance goal, the fact that you fail is obvious and gives you negative feelings. This is closely related to the effects of having a Fixed Mindset. Goals setting causes attention and action so that aspects of a job for which no goals are set will be ignored or neglected. With a productive goal the productivity will rise but negative effects on process/creativity may arise. A person may be more productive at work, for example sales figures are rising, more reports are being written. However, this person may neglect colleagues and team-work, resulting in poorer performance in other areas, or more pressure and work for others.

Performance goals are less likely to result in negative feelings because of failure. You can try alternative routes and feel reward in the effort you have put in. A mistake is a step that helps you to get to your goal. This is closely related to having a Growth Mindset. Process goals are likely to be pursued holistically, meaning that there is less tendency to ignore or neglect other people or other tasks.

Dream goals and Implementation goals

Dream goals are goals that you wish would be realized. They can be vague as well as clear, but they are not planned. There is no intention to implement them, thus there are no actions or steps taken to realize the dream goals. Implementation goals are intended to be realizes. The are planned: steps and actions are taken in order to reach the goal. The goals can be process goals or performance goals.

Cultural differences: Independent goals and Interdependent goals

Goal setting and the feeling related to them is different for people from different cultures. In cultures where independence is highly valued, people prefer to choose their own goals, they select goals that make them stand out and pride is a positive attribute. Consequently, they are more successful when they have freedom of choice and are able to choose independent goals. In cultures where interdependence is highly valued, people appreciate the family's and/or the group's well-being. They will choose more harmonious goals that benefit the in-group members and their feelings. They are more successful and happy when selecting interdependent goals. They are likely to choose a goal that is not their own but their parents' or the group's goal (Goals cultureoishi.pdf).

External links

 * Visualization: A key to achieving your goals
 * Visualization - The only thing your are not doing to achieve your dreams