 Coon (2001) defines a goal as an objective that requires a motivated and directed

chain of behaviors. Goals can vary in terms of their difficulty and the amount of
effort and planning needed to achieve them, and are influenced by an individual's
values and priorities. Goals are crucial for behavior to have purpose and avoid
randomness. The process of goal-directed behavior begins with an individual's
need or deficit, which creates tension and drives them towards the goal. Once the
goal is reached, the need is satisfied and the tension/drive is reduced. Ultimately,
an individual's need and drive motivate them towards their goal.

NEED DRIVE GOAL

Since all behavior is goal-directed, it is important for the individual to set sensible,
challenging, attainable goals. The following are some reasons why setting goals is
important:

1. Setting goals direct the individual’s behavior. When the individual becomes
aware of his needs, all of his behavior will be directed towards satisfying this need,
thus his goal. Behaviors that will not bring him closer to his goal are then lessened or
are totally disregarded.
2. Goals, once set, can determine the individual’s progress towards
accomplishing it. It is the individual taking his time or devoting too little effort to
reach the goal? In other words, goals serve as a measure of the individual’s progress
toward attaining it.
3. Goals serve as guides to discipline behavior. This will make sure that the person
does not divert from the right track. Behaviors that do not contribute to attaining the
goal are scrapped to make way for behaviors that do.
4. Goals keep the individual busy so no time is wasted. To procrastinate is to
achieve nothing. The individual should realize that time is precious and that every
moment should count. If the individual is really bent on achieving his goal, every
thought, every action taken is towards accomplishing it. The significance of
something is usually measured by the amount and quality of time spent doing it.
5. Goals motivate the individual because it provides a purpose/reason for his
behavior. Goals keep the individual on his feet, challenging him and giving meaning
to his existence.
SELF - EFFICACY
 Another concept in Albert Bandura’s social-cognitive aspect of behavior. As
defined by Bandura, self-efficacy refers to the person’s beliefs about his capacity
to exercise some measure of control over his behavior and over enets that take
place around him (Feist & Feist, 2009). Hence, self-efficacy forms the basis of
the human agency.
 The level of self-efficacy in a person is not constant. There are times when it is
high and times when it is low in the same individual. The changing levels of sels-
efficacy depends on factors like: specific competencies and the physiological and
psychological condition of the individual.
 Self-efficacy is a concept that is neither biological nor hereditary. Rather, it is an
attribute that can be learned and enhanced through the following:

1. Mastery of Learning and Skills. Practice is necessary for the individual to have
mastery. Pitfalls may happen along the way, but for each one that the person
overcomes, he becomes better at his craft.
2. A Good Social Model. Learning through observation is best achieved when the
model is credible and trustworthy. Models inspire the person to do well and be the
best that he can be.
3. A Persuasive Environment. A social environment that is supportive elevates the
morale of the individual and encourages him to perform at his best every time thereby
achieving his goals.
4. Physical Fitness. Competence for a physical skill initially requires that the person
is in good health. Any sign of fatigue or physical weakness, disease or disability limits
the activities/areas to be competent in.
5. Emotional Maturirty. This prepares the individual for the challenges and failures
encountered on the way to his goal. Emotional stability helps the person endure and
persevere until the desired goal is reached. It gives him the hope and the strength to
try and try again.

MINDSET
 Carol Dweck is a Stanford psychologist who wrote the book, Mindset: The New
Psychology of Success (2006). The book is all about the power of beliefs and how
it influences people’s lives. It also tackles how changing these beliefs alters every
aspect of an individual’s existence. A person may be classified as belonging to
one of two types of mindsets which is a manifestation of his beliefs:

1. Fixed Mindset. A person with a fixed mindset believes that their character,
intelligence and creativity are innate/inborn and cannot be changed or altered. In this
mindset, success means affirmation of these so-called inherited traits. It is further
believed that man’s qualities whether positive or negative are permanent.
2. Growth Mindset. A person with this mindset does not bank on given qualities for
them to be successful but instead he/she wanted to be challenged. This person knows
that initially he/she may not be successful, that he/she might fail. The person, however,
welcome failures as opportunities for growth and for honing their abilities and tapping
hidden potentials.