Life Skills and Leadership Manual - Peace Corps

Life Skills & Leadership: Unit 3, Session 2: SMART Goals | Page 18 of 67

Suppose choosing an object in the distance is like choosing a goal for yourself. What might

looking at it through the tube represent?” (Possible answers: The tube helps me identify and

define my goal better. The tube is my skills, abilities, or values that focus or direct my

attention. Knowing the details of my goal helps me be more clear about what I want.)

Note: In some cultures, people are more accustomed to looking at “wholes” rather than “parts.” Try to ask

participants which of these perspectives is true for their culture. Do they tend to look at systems and how they

relate to one another or do they usually focus on specific details and how those details function on their own

(which is the tendency in the U.S.)? Insights about this will be helpful as you teach people about making and

using goals in the activities that follow.

B. Summary

Summarize by saying:

“Sometimes when we describe things, we do not give as much detail as we should. We start with a

general view, which is all right for a while. But to understand the full picture, we need to identify

and describe more details. By focusing our attention on specific parts, we can begin to see

important connections, as well as the relationships between different parts. During this session we’ll

see that this is an important skill to master as we learn more about making goals.”

II. Information ( 30 minutes)
Materials:
Flip chart paper, markers or crayons
Flip chart 1: Writing a Goal
Handout 1: SMART Goals
Handout 2: A Recipe for SMART Goals

A. SMART Thinking
Participants learn why specific, measurable, and time-bound goals are helpful.

1. Invite participants to think about goals in more detail. Say:

“In the past we have talked about dreams you have for the future. That was like looking at something

from across the room (without looking through the tube). You could imagine what your future might be

like but I didn’t ask you to fill in very much detail. Today I’d like you to become more specific about your

dream by looking closely at all the details and defining a goal very specifically.”

2. Show Flip chart 1: Writing a Goal and say:

“Look at the first goal written here, 1A, and tell me what you think. Is ‘I want to study at a university’ a

good goal? (Pause for a few reactions.)

“This is fine for a dream but it doesn’t give any ideas about how to make it happen. A goal that is

written well can tell you how and when the thing you want is likely to be achieved.”

3. Draw attention to the second writing of goal 1B on Flip chart 1 and say: