The route to success in goal setting and achieving for your child

It is a very old saying, but a true one: if you don't know where you are going, you could end up somewhere else. Hence, goal setting and achieving the goals set are a valuable skill for your child throughout his/her life.

1. Let your child decide on a goal
Children's dreams and ambitions are their own, as are their gifts. When children work from the foundations of knowing what they are good at and what they want to achieve they have a much better chance of achieving that goal because they will have the personal motivation.

2. Refine goals. The brain likes precision and detail in goals
There is a big difference between a wish list and a goal. Typically a child might say, 'I wish i could do better in my homework.' To the brain this doesn't mean anything because you haven't told it what 'better' means. Is it getting a better and precise grade? Is it presenting your work more neatly?

3. What the brain sees it believes
Since prehistoric cave paintings, humankind has always used pictures to help spur them on to greater things. Visualization works in the same way and is great brain training.

4. 'Keep on going', don't let anything get you down
Ask anyone who has achieved brilliance in any given field and they all have the same story to tell: at many turns in the road they had to face and overcome obstacles - and then move on.

5. Break down big goals into little ones and give them precise timescales
Think of climbing a mountain and you have to build in little goals to get to where tou want to go. Help children achieve their big dreams by showing them how to break down their gial into little steps, all of which they can take in their stride confidently and happily.

6. Celebrate the wins and let children reward themselves
Always celebrate the wins. No matter how big or how small, they all count. The operative words here are 'let children reward themselves'. Real reward for achievement is all about feeling good inside, it is not about the size or cost of the prize. The prize is the achievement itself.