Salvo Soccer Tips: How to Encourage Your Child to Set Goals
Setting and achieving goals is one of the best ways to achieve our dreams. This is as true for soccer as for any other sport or activity in people’s lives. When we have children, we’re given the opportunity to teach them how to set good goals and encourage them to stick to those goals. But even parents might need a little help, and that’s where Salvo Soccer Club comes in.
We understand that teaching your child the importance of goal setting can be challenging, so we’ve outlined some tips on making it easier and more fun for both of you.
These tips can be applied to their soccer careers in addition to academic careers or any other activity.
Teach the Importance of Goal Setting
Most children like to know the reason why they’re doing something before they do it. Therefore, teaching them the importance of goal setting can help them foster a love of setting and achieving goals.
You can explain to your child that setting goals for the short and long term helps them to:
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Stay focused and motivated
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Track progress and improvement
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Build self-discipline and confidence
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Overcome challenges and setbacks
If your child has a favorite soccer or footballer, look them up and see if they have advice on setting and achieving goals. Plus, setting goals can help them achieve higher levels of skills over time, provided they continue to practice.
Use the SMART Goal Framework
The SMART goal framework is a great methodology for creating achievable goals. Goals like “lose weight” or “be a better soccer player” are not SMART because they lack precision.
Let’s break down SMART and see how these two goals can be altered.
SMART stands for:
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Specific: Clearly define what they want to achieve
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Measurable: Track progress with numbers or milestones
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Achievable: Ensure the goal is realistic for their skill level
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Relevant: Connect goals to their passions and interests
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Time-bound: Set a deadline to create accountability
The goal “build strength” can be SMART by altering it to “build the strength to do one pull-up in three months.”
Similarly, “be a better soccer player” can be SMART by altering it to “score three goals this season” or “practice for one hour every day for three months” or any number of iterations.
Help Them Set Both Short- and Long-Term Goals
Setting too many short-term goals or too many long-term goals can be overwhelming and may cause your child to lose focus.
Short-term goals, which are usually measured in weeks or months, are small, achievable targets that help build confidence. They help your child build momentum to keep pushing for those long-term goals.
Long-term goals, which are usually defined as 6 months to a year, are bigger aspirations that require consistency and perseverance to achieve. A long-term goal can be supported by several short-term goals.
Create a Goal Tracking System
Seeing progress or measuring success helps your child stay focused. Create a goal tracking system that your child can use to keep track of what they achieve that brings them closer to their goal.
Things like goat charts, progress journals, or printable worksheets can help them track their improvements and challenges. Printable worksheets provide structured templates for goal-setting that your child can follow.
Encourage Reflection & Adjustments
Reflecting on progress and goals is important to ensure the goals stay SMART. If your child feels that a goal is no longer SMART, then adjustments can be made.
One method is to ask weekly questions, such as:
Adjust their goals as needed to keep them realistic and motivating.
Be a Supportive Role Model
Kids learn by watching their parents, which means you can help them by setting your own goals and following through on them. Even if your goals are different, you can share your goal-setting experiences and celebrate efforts over outcomes to reinforce perseverance.
Always encourage a growth mindset, which teaches that mistakes are learning opportunities.
Sign Your Child Up for Salvo SC
Does your child show an aptitude for soccer? Sign them up for Salvo SC! Here, they’ll learn more than just soccer skills – they’ll learn important life skills and lessons that they’ll carry with them throughout their lives.
They’ll forge lasting friendships with players and coaches as they work together to create a winning soccer team. Our highly-trained coaches will work with your child to provide specialized training, which will allow for multiple pathways for your child, depending on their skills. With Salvo SC, you can be sure your child will have the experience of a lifetime.
Join Salvo SC today or contact us at 612-503-4738 for more information.