OK so this is the time of the year that we review the year just ending and set our goals for next year. We all start the new year with resolutions, but how many of us stick to them?

The problem with setting goals is that they are so easily brushed aside once we get into the meat and gravy of the year. We are distracted with other commitments such as family life, work, financial challenges etc.

Here is a quote from a book I am re reading, “Three Feet From Gold” by Lechter and Reid, “Goals are aspirations until they become real, then they become responsibilites.”

Let’s think about that. Using the usual weight loss goal that we all start with at the beginning of the year. The goal is to lose say 10lbs. If you just leave it at that and say that you would like to lose 10lbs, chances are you will not achieve your goal, it is merely an aspiration and is something you would like to achieve but not something you are committed to…it is not “real.”

Once you make the goal “real” then it becomes a responsibility, i.e. you are “responsible” for making the goal become a reality. Let’s think about that…how many people really want more responsibilities in their life?…we are already responsible for paying the mortgage, paying the kids through school, making sure we keep our job, keeping the marriage alive etc…who wants to throw in another responsibilty as well?

So, we start off the year with the “goal” of losing 10lbs and decide to eat less and exercise more…no rocket science needed. We start with avengeance by going for a run for a couple of days, then the soreness sets in and we take a break. We start out eating less, but feel hungry and tired pretty quickly.

So, after a week, we are sore from running, hungry and tired from not eating enough and we decide that the “goal” of losing 10lbs was not really a “real” goal and we have other much more important things to focus on (or responsibilites), so we let ourselves off the hook by selling ourselves the idea that we are not that much out of shape and once we get through this first month, things will be easier and we will get back on track again….sound familiar?

So what the heck has losing 10lbs got to do with our soccer coaching goals? Well firstly, take a look at yourself, would 10lbs less make you look and feel better? I could certainly do with looking a bit more “lean and mean” what about you?

No, seriously, I used the above example so that you could relate to what we all typically go through. I study successful people from all walks of life, it is a hobby of mine that also helps me improve as well. One of the major traits from all of these people is that they do have goals and they have systems or ways of thinking that helps them achieve them.

So, what are your soccer coaching goals for 2011? Leave a comment and share them with us on this blog. Maybe we can all work together to help you achieve them. Maybe you can share with us how you achieve your goals, their may be a nugget of “genius” in there that we can all benefit from!

I am in a strange situation regarding my soccer goals. I came to the USA from England in 1996 so that I could be involved in soccer full time. I have played, coached and refereed ever since, building up my own $1million per year soccer business at one point then moved into college coaching at an NAIA school and more recently an NCAA school. As you can see from previous posts, I built a successful team and then resigned just recently to focus more on my family.

So right now I am not currently involved in soccer as a player, coach, referee or business owner and it has felt kind of weird and I have been doing a lot of soul searching for ways in which I can still be involved in the game on a daily basis while still having time for my family.

I am excited to reveal that I have come up with some new goals that are definitely “real” and I am excited by the “responsibily” of achieving them. I am still working on the nitty gritty of the mechanics of making the goals become realities, but I feel both relieved and excited that I have come up with the goals and I am passionate about achieving them.

Over the course of the next year I will be keeping you up to date with both the goals and the trials and tribulations and successes along the way. I hope in some way that you will learn from my experiences and will be able to put those lessons to work and use them to help you achieve your goals.

Please go ahead and leave a comment about your goals, the things you do to help you achieve them and any challeneges that you face that we as a community may be able to help you overcome.

Let’s Talk Soccer…..Goals!