Goal Setting

1. Journey to Recovery Series
Goal Setting
Presented by: Dr. Dawn-Elise Snipes Executive Director, AllCEUs
Podcast Host: Counselor Toolbox & Happiness isn’t Brain Surgery
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs and Specialty Certifications $59

2. Objectives
 Identify the purpose of setting goals
 Learn about SMART goals and how to set them
 Explore pitfalls in goal setting
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

3. Why Do I Care
 Goal setting is an integral part of behavior change
 Goal setting is something everyone does every day
 Ineffective goals can have a negative impact on
self esteem
 Ineffective goals can make people mistakenly
think they are helpless to change anything.
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

4. Activity
 Identifying pitfalls in goal setting
 Prepare an authentic Italian meal.
Learn what an authentic Italian meal consists of
Decide what is going to be in YOUR meal
Learn about how to prepare that meal
Identify what ingredients you need for that meal (and get
what you don’t have)
Do you do everything at the same time? (Hint: No, the
sauce is made first so the seasonings can blend)
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

5. SMART Goals
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Time Limited
Think about the last goal you set that was successful…
Think about the last goal you set that was unsuccessful.
What is the difference between the two?
SMART?
Motivation?
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

6. Goals—The Beginning
 Goals (What & Why)
 I want to…so that I can …
 Goals are the overarching reason a person begins to do
something.
 Often goals are broad and abstract. “I want to be
healthier.” “I want to be happy.”
 Goals need to be broken down into manageable,
meaningful, observable objectives.
 Phrase goals as adding a positive instead of removing a
negative.
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

7. Start With Problem Definition
 What are the symptoms of the problem?
 How are the symptoms impacting your overall
functioning?
 What is your perception of the problem?
 What are your strengths in relation to solving this
problem?
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

8. Goal Development
 In general, if the problem is resolved what will you
achieve/what will be different?
 What is the absence of the problem?
 If I am not ____ then I am ______
 How will your best friend know when you have
achieved your goal?
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

9. Miracle Question
 One way to elicit goals is through the miracle
question:
 If you woke up tomorrow and you were _____ (i.e. your
problem was resolved/goal was achieved) what would be
different?
 This provides insight into the symptoms/definition of
the problem and motivations for change.
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

10. Specific
 Overall Goal for Treatment
 What is the problem?
Example: Depression
 How will you know when the problem is resolved?
Emotionally, I won’t feel as hopeless and helpless. I wont
dread getting out of bed.
Mentally, I won’t be so foggy headed and will be able to
concentrate
Physically, I will have more energy and lose some weight
Socially, I will enjoy spending time with friends
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

11. Specific
 Main Issue
 Learn about the overall problem (Depression)
 Learn about your symptoms/causes/triggers of the
problem
 Identify ways to address your specific
symptoms/causes/triggers
 Pick one way to address your specific symptoms
(helplessness, difficulty concentrating, no energy, no
desire to interact with others) and start doing that.
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

12. Measurable (Goals)
 Frequency (#/time)
 Number of times per day or week
 i.e. Number of crying episodes/day
 i.e. Number of eating episodes NOT due to hunger/day
 i.e. Number of wake-ups/night
 Duration (How long)
 Crying
 Eating
 Sleeping (How long were you awake)
 Intensity
 How bad was it? Likert (1-mild; 2-moderate; 3-intense; 4-
excruciating)
 Number of calories per binge
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

13. Recommendations
 When trying to change, aim to increase a positive
behavior
 Instead of crying  laugh
 Instead of stress eating  crochet
 Instead of measuring how sad you feel, measure how
happy you feel
 Positive behaviors serve roughly the same
function and are incompatible with the behavior
you are trying to eliminate.
 Keep it simple! Only choose one or two things to
measure.
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

14. Activity: Observable and Measurable
 Write each of the following “goals” on a piece of paper:
 Lose weight
 Get in shape
 Feel better about myself
 Be happier
 Identify at least 2 ways for each goal that identifies goal
achievement. “How will you know when you are/have
_____”
 How would you measure each of those?
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

15. Achievable, Realistic, Time-Limited
 Rome was not built in a day
 Built on prior strengths and individualized
 Something you are motivated and able to change
 Weekly goals; Daily goals; Hourly goals (Starting)
 Think of behavior change like learning lines for a play.
 You wouldn’t expect to read the script once and know it. You
must rehearse
 You will need prompts and assistance.
 As you learn the amount of prompts will be fewer.
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

16. The Hook, A.K.A. The 5 Ws
 Who is responsible for doing What, When, Where,
Why and How
 This is your action plan or map
 Who
 What are you responsible for doing, when and where
 Why are you doing it
 How is it helping you meet your ultimate goal
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

17. Example
 Main Issue (8/1/2016-9/5/2016)
 I will learn about the overall problem of depression by reading
one chapter of XYZ Book and the handouts provided by Dr.
Snipes each week for 5 weeks.
 I will learn about my symptoms/causes/triggers of the problem
by taking notes on what sounds like me as I read the book and
handouts about depression. I will review my notes each week.
 For each symptom I have, I will create an action plan to learn
about its causes and interventions and develop a plan of
action.
 Each morning and evening, I will do a mindfulness scan and
rate, on a scale from 1-4, my happiness and explain my
response. I will review this log each Friday to identify patterns
and trends.
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

18. Example
 Symptom: Fatigue (8/1/2016-9/5/2016)
I will learn about the symptom of fatigue by reading one
chapter handouts on docsnipes.com each week for 5
weeks.
I will learn about my causes/triggers of fatigue by taking
notes on what sounds like me as I read the handouts. I
will review my notes each week.
I will identify ways to address my fatigue causes/triggers
by reviewing handouts on DocSnipes.com
Each morning and evening, I will rate, on a scale from 1-4
my fatigue and explain my response. I will review this
log each Friday to identify patterns and trends.
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

19. Writing the Plan
 Goals are:
 Meaningful
 Specific and Observable
 Measurable
 Realistic
 Supported by sub-goals
 Use the KSA progression
 Address the reasons for NOT changing
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

20. Motivational Exercise
 Decisional Balance
 Completed on each unique behavior and repeated often
 Can be useful in addressing “resistance”
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5
To Change/Do the
Behavior
To Stay the Same/Not do
the Behavior
Benefits Emotional
Mental
Physical
Social
Financial
Occupational
Emotional
Mental
Physical
Social
Financial
Occupational
Drawbacks Emotional
Mental
Physical
Social
Financial
Occupational
Emotional
Mental
Physical
Social
Financial
Occupational

21. Pitfalls
 Failing to consider why currently do (or do not) engage
in certain behaviors
 Setting goals that are too big
 Setting goals that are too hard
 Setting too many goals
 Setting goals without sufficient rewards
 Setting goals that are too specific
 Failing to individualize to your temperament
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

22. Activity
 Write out instructions for how to do laundry. Give
it to someone who doesn’t know how to do it.
 How complete were your instructions?
Did you remember to sort the clothes, look at tags for
care instructions? Explain how to choose which
temperature, how much detergent to use, how to handle
stains and heavily soiled laundry?
 Now write out instructions for something you
don’t know about.
Rebuild a car
Learn to swim
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

23. Activity Scoring
 Did you identify subgoals?
 Were subgoals observable, measurable and
realistic
 Did you identify reasons someone would be
motivated to put forth the effort to
achieve this goal?
 Did you make sure you knew what you
needed to do and the sequence before
launching into it?
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

24. Summary
 Behaviors and feelings can be measured.
 Number of times per day
 Duration
 On a scale from 1-5
 Making goals small and achievable helps keep you
from getting discouraged and gives you frequent
rewards.
 It is vital to know the who, what, when, where and
whys of a behavior change and to put reminders
around, because behavior change doesn’t just
happen.
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

25. Summary
 Effective goals are Specific, Measurable,
Achievable and Time Limited
 Anyone should be able to look at your goal and
say whether or not you achieved it.
 Small goals that you can achieve in a week
increase confidence and maintain motivation.
 Instead of never eating sugar again, try cutting out
added table sugar for a week. The next week cut your
consumption of “sweets” in half. The next week, cut
your sweets in half again… and so on…
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5

26. Summary
 You can measure intensity or quality with an
anchored Likert scale
 Make sure the behaviors you are trying to change
actually will help you achieve the goal you are
setting
 Goals should follow the KSA progression
 Subgoals need to be small and reinforcement
should be frequent
 If motivation wanes revisit the decisional balance
exercise
AllCEUs.com Unlimited CEUs $59 | Specialty Certificates $89 | Live Webinars $5