What Is Personal Goals Essay

Personal goals are defined as “consciously articulated, personally important objectives that individuals pursue in their daily lives” (Elliot, Sheldon, & Church, 1997, p. 915). They influence major life decisions such as choosing one’s college major, as well as more mundane everyday choices, such as which novel to purchase (Fishbach and Ferguson, 2007). Research on personal goals has a central focus on the identification of characteristics of personal goals that predict variation in subjective well-being (Emmons, 2003), and findings have shown that certain types of goals are more effective in generating subjective well-being than are other types (Lyubomirsky, 2011). Hence, the evaluation of aspects of personal goals that an individual sets

I define short-term goals as goals that are realistically achievable in 12 months or less, and long-term goals, on the other hand, are goals that take 12 months or more to accomplish. Three of my short-term personal goals are to graduate from James Cook University with first class honours, to meet all of my friends from junior college before the end of this year, and to lower my body fat percentage to 24 percent. The accomplishment of these short-term goals will contribute to the fulfillment of several long-term personal goals that are important for achieving success in certain areas of my

The first aspect evaluated is the degree of need satisfaction associated with each of the goals. Self-determination theory maintains that the effects of goal attainment are determined by the degree to which individuals are able to satisfy their basic needs in goal pursuits (Deci & Ryan, 1980). According to this theory, personal goals are categorized into intrinsic and extrinsic aspirations; intrinsic aspirations are goals that are linked to the satisfaction of basic psychological needs such as goals for personal growth and close relationships, whereas extrinsic aspirations are goals that are instrumental rather than inherently enjoyable such as those for wealth or fame (Kasser & Ryan, 1996). Studies have shown that attainment of intrinsic goals relates positively to psychological health while attaining extrinsic goals results in less well-being (Niemiec, Ryan, & Deci, 2009; Ryan, Chirkov, Little, Sheldon, Timoshina, & Deci, 1999; Schmuck, Kasser, & Ryan, 2000; Vansteenkiste, Neyrinck, Niemiec, Soenens, De Witte, & Van den Broeck, 2007). Hence, long-term intrinsic goals are suggested to contribute positively to my subjective well-being, whereas extrinsic goals are assumed to have negative consequences for my well-being