Goals Get You to Where You Want to Be

POINT

Of course, this is a true statement. Goal-setting theory is one of the best supported theories in the motivation literature. Study after study has consistently shown the benefits of goals. Want to excel on a test, lose a certain amount of weight, secure a job with a particular income level, or improve your golf game? If you want to be a high performer, merely set a specific, difficult goal, and let nature take its course. That goal will dominate your attention, cause you to focus, and make you try harder.

All too often, people are told by others to simply "do their best." Could anything be vaguer? What does "do your best" actually mean? Maybe you feel that your "best" on one day is to muster a grade of 50 percent on an exam, while your "best" on another day is 80 percent. But if you were given a more difficult goal-say, to score a 95 on the exam-and you were committed to that goal, you would ultimately perform better.

Edwin Locke and Gary Latham, the researchers best known for goal-setting theory, put it best when they said: "The effects of goal setting are very reliable." In short, goal-setting theory is among the most valid and practical theories of motivation in organizational psychology.

COUNTERPOINT

Sure, a lot of research has shown the benefits of goal setting, but those studies ignore the harm that's often done. For one, how often have you set a "stretch" goal, only to see yourself later fail? Goals create anxiety and worry about reaching them, and they often create unrealistic expectations as well. Imagine those who set a goal to earn a promotion in a certain period of time (a specific, difficult goal), only to find themselves laid off once a recession hit. Or how about those who envision a retirement of leisure yet are forced to take on a part-time job or delay retirement altogether to continue making ends meet. When too many influential factors are out of our control, our difficult goals become impossible.

Or consider this: Goals can lead to unethical behavior and poorer performance. How many reports have you heard over the years about teachers who "fudged" students' test scores to achieve educational standards? When Ken O'Brian, a professional quarterback for the New York Jets, was penalized for every interception he threw, he achieved his goal of fewer interceptions quite easily-by refusing to throw the ball even when he should have.

In addition to this anecdotal evidence, research has directly linked goal setting to cheating. We should heed the warning of Professor Maurice E. Schweitzer- "Goal-setting is like a powerful medication" before blindly accepting that specific, difficult goal.

1. Summarize and compare both point and counterpoint.

2. Express your opinion/take and which argument do you agree with (point or counterpoint)? Justify it and make your argument.

3. Sum up your discussion.