Author name: Sheri Smith

Activity: Goal Orientation

Activities, Skills /

Goal setting is one of the most powerful yet overlooked tools in personal and professional development. Studies show that people who write down their goals are 50% more likely to achieve them, yet only a small fraction of adults harness this simple strategy.

If you're ready to unlock your potential, this post will guide you through setting meaningful, actionable goals that you can stick to and achieve. By learning proven techniques like SMART and HARD goal-setting models, you'll create a clear path to success, one goal at a time.

The Goal

Goal setting is one of the most powerful but underutilized tools at our disposal. This lesson is all about teaching you to spend more time thinking and writing down your goals so that you can set goals throughout your life – and achieve them.

Step 1:

Begin by developing 2-3 big-picture goals for yourself as an individual, which you can work toward throughout one full semester or another extended period of time. These goals may involve personal development (e.g. “I want to be more confident” or “I want to speak up for myself”), career development (e.g. “I want to become a lawyer” or “I want to start a company”), or skill development (e.g. “I want to become a stronger reader” or “I want to improve my presentation skills”). The goals may relate to school, or they may not. Either way, establish something that you want to achieve. After brainstorming 2-3 big picture goals, write down 1-2 sentences outlining each goal.

Step 2:

Come up with 3-5 specific goals for the next 2-4 weeks and write them down. These short-term goals should promote, in some tangible way, your big-picture goals. Write down goals that are actually achievable within the given timeframe. It is better to achieve small wins over time than shoot for a big win and get discouraged.

Step 3:

Every week, go back over your short-term goals and check off the goals that you’ve accomplished.

Step 4:

Now that you’ve made progress on your short-term goals, it’s important to take a step back and assess whether these accomplishments are moving you closer to your long-term vision. Ask yourself: Are my short-term wins aligned with my long-term objectives?


If your progress is on track, great! But if you find that you’re not moving in the right direction, it may be time to adjust. Look for any gaps between where you are now and where you want to be. Identify new short-term goals that can bridge those gaps or help you overcome obstacles that have surfaced along the way.


Tip: This step is about staying flexible. Your long-term goals might remain steady, but your short-term goals should be adaptable based on your progress and new insights.

Goal Setting Models

SMART goals and HARD goals are guidelines to writing effective, accomplishable goals. To follow one of the goal-setting models, write down each category (ie Specific, Measurable, etc.) and then write down the part of your goal that fulfills it.

SMART Goals

SMART goals are goals that fulfill the following guidelines:

  • Specific: Clear, focused idea of what you want to change.
  • Measurable: Defined, quantifiable way to track the change or growth.
  • Actionable: Straightforward, simple things you can do to progress this goal starting today.
  • Realistic: Levelheaded, honest assessment of the goal’s feasibility.
  • Timely: Precise, easy to follow calendar for when you should hit certain milestones.

HARD Goals

HARD goals are goals that are Heartfelt, Animated, Required, and Difficult. When you are creating a goal, it’s best to work in the order A, H, D, R.

  • A is for Animated – as in animating goals in your mind by envisioning them happening. When you’ve got a good idea of what you want, write it down. This will make your vision more real and increase your odds of achieving it.
  • H stands for Heartfelt – Make sure you can answer the questions, Why does your goal matter? and, Why do you care about it? When you are clear about the value of your goal, it’s easier to stay committed.
  • D is for Difficult – Make goals that push your limits. What skills do you need work on to make your impossibles, possible? Great achievements don’t come easily- but that’s what makes them so rewarding.
  • R stands for Required. You’ve got to be convinced that your goals are necessary and not just a wish, if you want to make them happen. Do something every day that is on track with your vision. What can you focus on this week? What do you need to achieve in the next month? In the next year?
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Activity: Futuristic Thinking

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At Indigo Education Company, we believe that understanding yourself, your team, and your future is key to success. Futuristic thinking is a powerful skill that allows you to envision possibilities and champion ideas that can shape tomorrow.

Whether you're a student, career seeker, or professional, learning to think like a futurist can guide your path and open doors to new opportunities. Explore the principles of futures thinking and reflect on how you can apply these insights to your personal and professional journey.

The Goal

Futurists imagine, envision, or predict what has not yet been realized. They work to develop their brains to envision possibilities that others may not and to champion progressive ideas.

Step 1:

Read the article, “Five Principles for Thinking Like a Futurist.”

Read the Article

Step 2:

As you read, apply the 4 A’s protocol to reflect on the ideas:

Take a moment to reflect on how these principles and your insights can shape your approach to future challenges. How can you incorporate futuristic thinking into your personal or professional growth?

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Activity: Flexibility

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Change is inevitable, but how do you respond when it happens? Take a moment to reflect on recent shifts in your life—big or small. How did these changes make you feel, and what did they reveal about your flexibility in response to change? By exploring these questions, you might discover something unexpected about your ability to adapt.

Dig into this self-reflective exercise to uncover how you can turn change into a powerful catalyst for personal and professional development.

The Goal

It is important to monitor your own responses to change. As you gain understanding about how you react to change, you will develop flexibility skills.

 

Step 1:

List three changes that have occurred recently in your personal or professional life.

1.
2.
3.

Step 2:

For each of the three changes, answer the questions listed below.

Step 3:

What are the implications of your reactions to these changes in your life and/or your work?

*Adapted with permission from TTI International, Ltd. 2010.

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Activity: Empathy

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Empathy is not just about understanding others—it's also about being in tune with ourselves. Before we can fully connect with the feelings of those around us, we must first recognize and acknowledge our own emotions. This blog post introduces a simple yet powerful activity designed to help you do just that.

Through a self-empathy check-in, you will have the chance to pause throughout your day, take stock of your feelings, and gain deeper insights into your emotional landscape. By engaging in this practice, you will not only enhance your self-awareness but also strengthen your capacity for empathy toward others.

The Goal

The goal of this activity is to have an opportunity to notice your own emotions. Most people rarely stop to consider the emotions they are experiencing, except when those emotions become intense. This is a self-empathy check-in.

 

Step 1:

Choose a two-day period and stop briefly at identified times of day to notice and note the emotion(s) you are experiencing. Use the chart format below to record the emotion and what you were doing at the time (e.g., eating breakfast alone, reading a book, dealing with a difficult customer).

Step 2:

Reflect on what you notice about the emotions you wrote down.

  • What patterns do you see?
  • What did it feel like to stop on a schedule to notice what you were feeling?
  • What did you learn about yourself?
  • What did you learn about empathy?
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Activity: Diplomacy/Tact

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Effective communication is key to fostering positive relationships and creating harmonious environments in our personal and professional lives. Diplomacy and tact are crucial components of this communication.

This exercise aims to enhance your understanding and application of these skills using the "Three Levels of Text" protocol. By reflecting deeply on the content of the article "Tact and Diplomacy," you will gain insights that can transform your approach to communication in various aspects of your life.

The Goal

Diplomacy and tact impact our relationships and environments, and this exercise uses the “Three Levels of Text” protocol to deepen understanding and skills in these areas by reflecting on an article’s content and implications.

Step 1:

“Tact and Diplomacy” is an article with definitions, prerequisites, and strategies. Our understanding of what we read can be enhanced by using a protocol that promotes reflection as we read. One such protocol is the Three Levels of Text Protocol, which can be used as you read and can also enhance discussion when two or more people have read the same article in a group setting. Read the article and, as you read, use the prompts below to reflect on essential elements of the article and identify implications for your own communication.

Read Article Here

Step 2:

Reflect on your current communication skills and identify one specific goal you want to achieve in the area of diplomacy and tact. Write down this goal, ensuring it is clear and actionable. Consider how achieving this goal can positively impact your personal and professional relationships.

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Activity: Decision Making

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Making decisions can be daunting, especially when faced with multiple options and the pressure to make the best choice. Whether you're deciding which bicycle to buy, which course to enroll in, or what career path to follow, a structured approach can simplify the process. This is where a Decision Matrix Tool comes in handy. In this blog post, you'll learn how to use a Decision Matrix to systematically evaluate your options and make well-informed decisions confidently. By the end of this guide, you'll be equipped with a powerful method to tackle any decision, big or small.

The Goal

Learn to use a Decision Matrix Tool to simplify the process of choosing between multiple options, ensuring the best decision is made by individuals or teams.

Step 1:

Think of a decision you need to make that involves two or more options. Are you trying to decide which of three new bicycles to purchase? Or which course to take? Or which major or career to pursue?

Write down what decision you need to make. Then write down the options you have.

Decision:

Options:

        1.  
        2.  
        3.  

Step 2:

The article, “The Decision Matrix: The Decision Matrix Is The Perfect Tool For Decision Making,” defines the decision matrix and presents a case study that shows you how to design and use a decision matrix. Read the article, and as you do so, consider how to design and use a decision matrix of your own to make the decision you identified in Step 1, above.

Read Article Here

Step 3:

Design and use the decision matrix that will lead you to the best decision among the options you identified in Step 1. You may use the template below or adapt it to best fit your specific decision and options.

Step 4:

What are the benefits of using a decision matrix for you? How could you use this tool in the future?

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Activity: Creativity/Innovation

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Unleashing Student Creativity and Innovation!

Imagine a world where students are given the same freedom to innovate as engineers at Google, who spend 20% of their time on passion projects. What could our students achieve with similar flexibility to pursue their own genius?

This blog post explores the concept of the "Genius Project," a commitment to creativity and personal growth. Students will brainstorm ideas, write proposals, dedicate time each week to their projects, and present their results—all while tying their efforts to their top motivators and skills. Join us in redefining student potential and fostering a new wave of creativity and innovation.

The Goal

Google, a company with a reputation for innovation, gives its engineers one day a week to work on a passion project. That’s right—20% of their billing time is spent pursuing ideas and interests that may only loosely tie back to their workflow. What would happen if we gave students the same flexibility? What if we gave them the time to pursue their own genius?

Note: This exercise is a commitment. It requires time and a willingness to engage in serious exploration and growth over the course of months.

Optional Add-On: To develop “Time and Priority Management” and “Planning and Organizing” skills, write a proposal that includes how you plan to manage your time over the course of this project and define the different tasks you must complete before the project is considered complete. Essentially, you will submit a detailed plan of how you will carry your project out and manage your own time over the planned timeframe of the project.

Step 1:

Brainstorm what your “Genius Project” could be. Your ideas should be specific to you as an individual. Your passion project must be tied to your top one or two Motivators so start brainstorming by looking at your Motivators on your Indigo Summary Page. 

Examples of ideas: starting and growing a new club at school for people interested in coding or investing, building a business, planning a school-wide volunteering day, writing and producing a one-act show for students, leading a full-fledged fundraiser for an initiative that you care about, managing your school’s social media initiatives, learning to build a website from scratch, working on a massive art project or performance, etc.

Step 2:

Write a one-page proposal. The proposal should explain the overall project scope and also how it fits your top one or two Motivators. You should explain how you plan to utilize your top five Skills from your Indigo Summary Page to execute your project. Hold yourself accountable to picking a project that fits you and is sufficiently challenging.

Step 3:

Spend one or two hours a week pursuing your project. This project can be as long or as short as you would like it to be, but the sweet spot is at least 15-20 hours—enough time for you to develop serious projects with a large scope of work.

Step 4:

Create a presentation about the end results of your project. This can be in any form you choose—presentation, essay, collage, video, website, etc. – as long as it is clear that the results reflect your true genius and genuine effort. In your final presentation of the project, you should demonstrate how the project tied in to your top  Motivators and how you used your top Skills to successfully complete the project.

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Activity: Continuous Learning

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Dedicate yourself to the pursuit of continuous learning, a lifelong journey that embraces curiosity, inquiry, and the expansion of your expertise and skills. This blog post showcases what it means to be a lifelong learner, explores various methods to achieve continuous learning, recognizes your existing efforts, and helps you commit to ongoing growth both personally and professionally.

Engage in the activity to learn more and lay a foundation for perpetual learning, ensuring success in school, life, and work.

The Goal

Being a continuous, lifelong learner involves making a commitment to pursuing questions, engaging in inquiry, and expanding one’s areas of expertise and skill. This activity is designed to provide an opportunity to define lifelong learning, to acknowledge the ways in which one is already a lifelong learner, and to commit to always continuous learning in school, at work, and in life.

Step 1:

Read 50 Ways to Be A Lifelong Learner at Home.

Lifelong Learning At Home

Step 2:

As you read, take notes using the format below, or print the template in the PDF below (click “Download PDF” to view).

Step 3:

What commitment will you make to engage in continuous learning in your work and in your life? Write down your commitment.

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Activity: Conflict Management

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Conflict is often viewed as a source of tension and discomfort, something to be avoided at all costs. However, beneath the surface lies a powerful catalyst for innovation and growth. Some of the most profound ideas emerge from the depths of conflict, yet many shy away due to a lack of effective conflict resolution skills. In this blog post, we present a six-part process to empower you to navigate conflicts confidently, whether in school, life, or your career.

The Goal

Some of the best new ideas result from fully engaging in conflicts. Many people avoid conflict because they have not learned the skills necessary to create productive conflict. This activity will give you a six-part process you can use whenever you encounter conflict.

Step 1:

Read the short article, “The Proven Six-Step Tool for Conflict Resolution”. As you read, consider the extent to which you have or have not used these six strategies when engaging in conflicts in the past.

The Proven Six-Step Tool

Step 2:

Consider your skills in these six strategy areas and rank them from your strongest skill to your weakest skills, with 1 being your strongest skill and 6 being your relatively weakest skill.

Conflict Management Ranking Table

Step 3:

Set a goal for your part in the next important conflict situation you encounter. What will you do more of? What will you do less of?

Goal 1: I will do more……

Goal 2: I will do less…….

Step 4:

As you go through the next week, observe the conflicts you are involved in, both large and small. Use these situations as opportunities to practice the Six-Step Tool for Conflict Resolution, and then reflect on these questions:

What did you learn about conflict as you used the Six-Step Tool?

What did you learn about yourself as you used the Six-Step Tool?

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Activity: Analytical Problem Solving

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We all encounter challenges in various aspects of our lives, whether it's at school, in our communities, or within ourselves. However, simply identifying these problems is just the beginning of the journey. Our goal is to shift the focus from merely complaining about problems to actively collaborating on solutions and implementing the best ones.

In this post, we'll explore a structured approach to analytical problem solving, empowering you to tackle any big-picture issue or question with confidence. From identifying complaints to brainstorming solutions and refining them, we'll guide you through each step.

And remember, analytical thinking is a skill that extends beyond problem-solving exercises. We'll explore additional ways to hone your analytical skills, from playing brain games to utilizing online analytical tools in your daily life.

Are you ready to transform problems into opportunities for growth and innovation? Let's get started!

The Goal

When it comes to analytical problem solving, identifying the problem is only the first step. We want to create solutions! Shift the mindset away from complaining about problems to collaborating on solutions and implementing the best ones.

Note: You should become familiar with the “Yes, And” technique to do this exercise successfully. Learn more about the Yes, And Technique

The "Yes, And" Technique

This exercise can be repurposed to tackle any big-picture issue or question.

Step 1:

Think about your complaints about your school. Do you hate the food? Do you wish the classrooms had more light? Do the bathrooms smell? Write them down. The problems could be about anything – school, friends, family or your community.

Step 2:

Set a timer and come up with as many solutions as you can in 5 minutes. Write them on post-it notes. The goal of Part 2 is quantity, not quality. Challenge yourself to come up with as many crazy ideas for solutions as you can.

Step 3:

Pick your top 3 – 5 ideas and use the “Yes, And” technique to improve them. How can these ideas be made better? Which are feasible to do? How can you make each solution more tangible? Add more post-its and create an affinity diagram to answer these questions for your top 3 – 5 ideas.

More information on affinity diagrams can be found here.

Affinity Diagram

Other ways to build analytical thinking skills: Play brain games online at Lumosity or common games like Sudoku, chess, backgammon and Scrabble.

You can also try incorporating online analytical apps and tools into your daily habits. MyFitnessPal, Mint – a budget manager and tracker, Google Analytics, and other data based apps are great ways to track your habits and improve analytical thinking.

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