Unit 1 Taking Charge of Your Health and Wellness Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. 24 work together, with others to make a group decision. Collaborating with others can give you options you may not have considered otherwise. Still other times, you may want to seek the advice of your family or friends. When you do ask others for their opinions, consider how their advice aligns with your values and priorities. In this way, you are more likely to make a good decision. Setting and Achieving Goals Goals are important for many aspects of life, including your health. Therefore, learning the skills you need to set and work toward goals is important. A goal is a desired result of something you plan to do. Goals motivate you and keep you focused on what you need to accomplish. Setting and working toward goals can help you change situations you do not like or help you get where you want to be. They can also give you a sense of satisfaction. Goals can be short-term or long-term. A short-term goal is a goal you want to accomplish in the near future, within days or weeks. A long-term goal requires more time—months or years—to achieve. Reaching a long-term goal may involve achieving a series of short-term goals. When setting goals, consider your values, or what is important to you, and assess your current situation. To make sure your goals are clearly stated and achievable, use the acronym SMART to guide your goal setting. SMART goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely (Figure 1.11). An example of a SMART goal is eating 2½ cups of vegetables every day for one month to improve healthy eating habits. This goal is more measurable, achievable, and timely than the goal of eating more vegetables. To accomplish a goal you set, create an action plan, which is a detailed step-by-step method to reach a desired outcome. Your action plan should outline what you are going to do, how you are going to do it, and when it will be done. Be specific. Create short-term goals to outline what you need to do each day, week, or month to meet your long-term goal. Make sure that your Setting SMART Goals S Specific Clearly states what you want to accomplish What do I want to achieve? Why is this goal important? A Achievable Can be realistically reached How can I accomplish this goal? Do I have the necessary resources? M Measurable Has results that can be clearly observed How will I know when the goal is accomplished? R Relevant Relates to who you are and what you want Does this goal align with my values and priorities? T Timely Is achievable within a reasonable period of time How long will it take me to accomplish my goal? Figure 1.11 Use questions such as the ones in this figure to ensure you are setting SMART goals.