You need goals to win a soccer match, but you also need them to win at life. Goals fuel success. Backed by hard work and dedication, the “I wish I had done this…” changes to “I did this!” Goals push you to overcome obstacles in pursuit of your dreams. With soccer, goals can be as simple as improving your mile time to playing in college.


This series focuses on making these goals S.M.A.R.T., providing you with the best opportunity to then make them a reality.


First, what are S.M.A.R.T. goals? SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-Bound. These together create a goal that is carefully planned, clear, and trackable –all of which are needed to set yourself up for success.


You may have set goals in the past that were either too difficult to achieve or your dedication tapered off. This could be for a number of reasons, goals that were too vague, overly ambitious, or poorly set up. These make goals daunting or even unachievable. A S.M.A.R.T. goal helps navigate these obstacles.


Let’s start with the first one: Specific.

Whether it’s on the pitch or in life, be specific about what you want to achieve. Specifics can be as short and simple as wanting to learn to do the ‘hop the world’ trick by the end of the week to long-term like making the varsity team next year.


Being specific creates a finish line that you can see and feel successful when you cross it.