Thou shall memorialize your goals and study them daily.

“Goals in writing are dreams with deadlines...”

Brian Tracy

            By now, if you have been reading this blog a bit, you have come to understand that I am one of those people that truly believes in “goal-setting.” I love New Years Resolutions and really any process that involves you sitting down and figuring out what you want and, more importantly, how you are going to get there. Every New Years you will find me hounding my friends and family about their goals for the New Year. Even Lent is a time to set a goal, albeit for an even higher purpose…(give up chocolate…give up beer…give up whatever…but set a goal and then darn it…stick to it).

            Being already this type of goal-oriented person, I surprised even myself at how moved I was while sitting at my daughter’s AAU basketball practice.  For those of you unfamiliar, AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) basketball is a very competitive form of basketball, which generally takes place in the Spring and Summer after school-ball is over. Girls that really want basketball to be a part of their futures from all different high schools try out for teams all across the country hoping to keep playing a sport they love and further attempting to increase their exposure to college coaches who may one day offer these girls an opportunity to play at the next level (college). So, suffice it to say, these girls are already driven, motivated and, of course, goal driven.

            Given that we are new to Indiana, my daughter, Gabby, has a new coach. He  too, appears to share my passion for goal-setting but he takes it even one step further…he assigns goal-posters. The girls are required to prepare a poster at the start of every new AAU season which outlines their main goal, their short term goals, and their long term goals. I already loved this idea but I loved it even more when he explained to Gabby (and the other new members of the team) that these goals were not just basketball goals, but rather also spiritual goals, academic goals, and family goals. He wanted the girls to go home and first determine what their goals were, but then, much more importantly, he wanted them written down, glittered, highlighted, etc…basically do whatever you want to your poster. Only one more rule… after you shared your poster with your teammates, you were to place your poster somewhere where you would stare at it every night before going to bed and every morning first thing before your feet ever touch the floor.

            I loved her coach a lot before that moment, but after the assignment of this task, I loved him even more.

            What a fantastic opportunity for the girls. A chance to really soul search and figure out what you want to do with your life, both this year and forever. A chance to make a written commitment to setting your goals and detail how you plan to reach those goals.  I loved it. I really did.

            Gabby rarely ever wants/needs my help with her homework which is a good thing. Her math level is so far past my limits, it’s almost embarrassing. She read a book for AP World History this summer that was so difficult and so thick that I couldn’t get two paragraphs into it without asking her if they made cliff notes…

            But with the goal poster, I was thinking she would likely need my help. Maybe just a few tips as to how to best phrase something or maybe some guidance about what she wanted to do with the rest of her life, right?

            No. Nothing.

            I offered and she said she had it covered so I left it at that. To be honest, trying to fulfill someone else’s goals for you never works anyway so I figured this was the perfect opportunity to let her be her…let her decide her destiny…

            That next Monday night as she stood before her teammates and described in detail how she wanted to develop a closer bond with God and was going to do so by confiding in Him more often, I just sat quietly, really unaware that she felt that way. I watched how her and her coach discussed the daily bible verses he gets sent to his phone (by an “app” of course) and how he feels if he didn’t get a chance to honor God in any other way that day, at least he gets to read and think through the verse. He thought maybe she would want to try that too.

            I thought, wow, this is everything coaching should be…he’s listening to her goals, even those unrelated to basketball and helping her find ways to achieve them…Even John Wooden would be proud…

            Gabby discussed her love for her sisters and yet how they can drive her crazy. Typical for sisters, I’m sure. She said she was going to make an effort to help them more and have more patience with them; she discussed her basketball goals of course but in truly concrete terms. Not just, “I want to increase my foot speed” but how she was going to get there this summer (jumping rope, running ladders, track work); and she discussed how she wants to grow up and be a sports reporter like Erin Andrews on ESPN. She wants to intern this summer (unpaid, if necessary) at a local TV station in the sports department to learn the ropes and get a jump-start on her career.

            And lastly, she said she wants to work every day to one day become a successful sister, daughter, wife and mother and to always make her family proud. I think that is the one she already has the jump-start on…

            In any event, I left the experience so moved. Just hearing girl after girl share her deep darks secrets and goals. Each relying on the others not to laugh…not to judge…and most importantly, trusting each other to help all of them reach their goals.

            I went home and could not get that experience out of my head.  I was thinking how everyone should have one of these posters. They can be made in classrooms at the start of the new year; they can be made in clubs to describe what you are willing to give and what you hope to receive for membership…they are applicable and valuable in so many arenas of your life…not just the athletic ones….

            So I sat down and started my own goal poster. Both short term and long term. Including all the same categories as Gabby did…spiritual, family, work, athletic…I figure you are never too old to set your goals. You are never too old to share them with others who may help you reach them…

            And, shoot, you are never too old to use glitter…

-Hoping you get closer to your goals today,

Claudia