Rewriting Smart…Literally
If you know Essig Education Group, you know that our tagline is “Rewriting Smart.” This month, we’re looking at putting that into practice in meaningful way by exploring the concept of Abstract Goals, and in the process, turning Smart Goals upside down!
EEG Executive Function Specialist Emily Griswold bases her work with students on the concepts of Aylet Fischbach (author of Get it Done: Surprising Lessons from the Science of Motivation), Lexi Merritt, and Sonya Renee Taylor. While we still want to see IEP goals written using the SMART Goals system, Abstract Goals are extremely effective in executive functioning, social skills, healthy living, and other less-quantifiable domains. Abstract Goals use a person’s individuality and unique pattern of strengths and interests to fuel intrinsic motivation for learning and improving their skillsets.
What does this look like?
Many of our students have become accustomed to setting goals that leave them with the messages: you’re doing this wrong; you’re not good at this; you need to meet these external standards. Goal setting which focuses on the product over the process, consequently, can unwittingly become the cause of increased anxiety, fear of failure, and decreased motivation. Abstract goal setting is structured differently, starting with an exploration of, “What are my values?” From there, we focus on, “What are my strengths?” These explorations lead to a menu of strength-based strategies that honor your unique profile and allow the freedom to try, fail, and try again in service to your ultimate goal.
Obviously, we’re not talking about academic foundational goals – you’re still going to need to demonstrate that mastery of 54 letter sounds, for example – but rather life goals and targets that allow for self-compassion and strive for meaningful results. The process of getting to the “why” shines a light on how achieving this goal will be significant to you on a personal level. The process of identifying strength-based strategies allows for experiential learning.
What do we mean by this?
Goals don’t exist in a vacuum – life happens. Abstract goals and menus of strategies can allow for the possibility of success that looks a little different from what you might have envisioned. For example, say you want to set up a goal for more exercise. A traditional SMART Goal might be: I will run for 15 minutes a day, 5 days a week, to decrease my mile run time to 7 minutes by June 2023. An Abstract Goal would be: I will consistently move my body in ways that feel good and support my physical, mental, and emotional health.
What’s the difference? Say you wake up late and it’s raining. Are you going to want to do that 15 minute run? Probably not. With the SMART Goal, you are left feeling like you’ve failed. With the Abstract Goal, you can say, “I’m not going to run today, but I can stretch for 15 minutes,” and you have still taken action and used a strategy in service to achieving the desired outcome.
Interested in ways to “Rewrite Smart?” Check out our Executive Function coaching and other offerings at https://www.essigeducationgroup.com/executive-function-coaching.