FREE and Stylish PDF Goal Setting Worksheets and Templates
- By James Stevenson -
Take a look at the carefully designed goal setting worksheets below...
Goal setting worksheets can be used to turn your hopes and dreams into motivational and concrete plans. They can support you in getting clearer about what you want, encouraging yourself, and in preparing yourself for what lies ahead. They enable you to be specific and focus on the things that can support you.
This goal setting worksheets may be helpful if...
- You're a teacher who'd like your students to achieve more of what they're capable of?
- You're a coach/therapist looking for resources to support your clients...
- You're a trainer, or in a leadership role in your organisation...
- You're determined it's time for action in a situation you're facing!
- You've decided it's time to be proactive in achieving your dreams.
Whatever the reason is, you’ve found something unique here… goal setting worksheets created by a qualified and accredited life coach who has studied the science in depth at university and has worked with a wide variety of clients on their goal progress and achievement.
If you prefer these worksheets blank without the titles and questions so you can add your own, have a look at these goal setting templates.
Check out and download the goal setting worksheets here
Below you will find the following:
- Long term vision - Short term goals - Create a long term vision (30 items) for your life and decide a few initial short term goals and steps
- Set goals in 7 different areas of life over multiple time-frames (social, family, health, career, finances, learning, character)
- Set goals in each of your roles (friend, colleague, brother, mother, son etc...)
- Long term dreams planning sheet - Set top 10 long term goals and consider best first steps
- Think through one long term dream in more detail - a worksheet to zone in on one dream
- This years goals - Decide on some things you'd like to achieve this year
- Top 3 goals - Choose your top 3 things to focus on right now
- Your main goal right now - to go through your main goal in detail
- Daily goal cards - Printable daily goal cards to keep with you throughout the day
1. Long term dreams - Short term goals
What's your vision for say... 20 years from now? You can add anything that comes up for you... What kind of work would you like to be doing? what will you have learnt 20 years from now? How will your character have developed? What kind of relationships will you have? What contribution to society will you have made?
Have you given yourself time to imagine what might be possible for you with the right tools and support? Doing so has been linked in research to higher wellbeing and happiness (Hefferon and Boniwell, 2011)
If you have already done something like this, now could be a good time to even more deeply etch your future vision in your heart. It doesn't have to include fame and fortune or be massive in scale. Fill it out in your own way and to your own satisfaction. A unique reflection of you.
Whether or not you actually achieve it all isn't something to worry about at this point. In the short term, realistic goals are great but in the long term you should be willing to dream. Remember, Ralph Waldo Emerson's words that "when you aim above the mark... you hit the mark!"
Whatever you create when you fill out this goal setting worksheet is very personal. It can be added to, adjusted, changed, and updated as the days, weeks, months, and years pass. It can be considered a live document. Forever changing as you change.
This worksheet attempts to utilise a goal setting tool I use in coaching called chunking. When you have a big chunk or goal, you can create related smaller chunks or specifics and make it feel real and more possible.
Likewise, when you have an isolated small chunk or goal, something very specific, you can connect it to bigger chunks or goals adding meaning.
Take for example, a very big chunk like making a major contribution to reducing suffering in the world. Discussing smaller chunks, can be empowering. Maybe this for you begins with is about helping people who are in poverty become financially secure. Or maybe it's about being there for friends who are struggling and listening. Smaller still,
If you're unsure about what you want your future to look like and want to try an alternative approach, you may be interested in trying a positive psychology intervention called "my best possible self". It's a free-flow writing exercise that does a good job at increasing optimism, wellbeing and achievement (King, 2001). Let me know how you get on with this long-term dreams and short term focus goal setting worksheet in the comments below.
2. Seven Areas of life Goal Setting Worksheet - Choosing where to aim in different areas in your life
Are you interested in using a goal setting worksheet that looks at multiple areas of your life? Maybe considering multiple areas could help you choose what to focus on first? Or seeing what you various areas could help you see a pattern?
Finding goals that are in conflict with each other could be a breakthrough moment, or finding goals that align might give you a confidence boost...
This worksheet will allow you to think through what you want to achieve in 7 popular and key areas of goal setting. Don't worry if you can't fill it all in at this time. Just fill in what you can and keep it handy. I'm sure more ideas will flow in good time.
You might want to print it out and read through the examples below to see which goals feel like something you'd like to shoot for?
- Your social life - goals to create a social life that works for you (What improvement would you like to see? A positive change regarding your friendships and connections? Doing more of something you're passionate about with others? What's your ideal when it comes to a fun and interesting social life)
- Your family (Is there something that you'd like to change in your family? A tricky relationship? More time spent together? Connecting with family that have become distant?)
- Your health (What would you like your health to be like? What comes first? do you want to start exercising or do more exercise? Or change your weight? Maybe you want to take up a new or old sport? Or eat healthier? Do you want to get into nutrition? or improve your psychological health and wellbeing)
- Your career (What do you want to achieve career wise? would you like to change direction, get a promotion, start a business, expand your current business)
- Your finances (How are your finances? What are you aiming for there? Would you like to start saving or save more, pay off debts, spend less, be more aware of your finances? Learn about investing? Invest more? Decrease the risk in your investing? Diversify?)
- Your learning (How important is learning to you? Would you like to learn something new, or deeper your knowledge of a particular topic? Is it your goal to go back to university and master some topic? Or read more?)
- Your character (How about your character? Does it feel important to create a change there? would you like to build resilience? become more joyful? or increase your awareness of your strengths and use them more often?). By the way, you can discover what some of your most important and natural strengths are with this FREE 15 minute strengths survey
The beauty of this goal setting worksheet is you can explore multiple areas, and also explore multiple time frames. It can be a great way of deciding what you might want to focus on straight away, and what for example could take centre stage in a couple of months.
Of course, you don't necessarily need to set goals in all 7 areas. You might want to think of this more as a creative exercise in self-discovery... a tool to work out priorities... or an aid to support planning your year... Feel free to use all these goal setting worksheets in the way that feels most natural!
Also if you want to choose the 7 areas yourself, you can download the blank template for this worksheet.
3. Set goals for each role in your life
You no doubt have many roles in life. To some you are a close friend, to others you are colleague... you may be a mother, a brother, a daughter, a neighbour, a boss...
If you are interested in focusing on the impact you have and could have on others in your life, this worksheet could be a good starting point to get some ideas down.
The goal setting worksheet above will not only let you think about what you'd like to see in your relationships... what you'd like to improve... but it'll also raise awareness of how connected you are in the first place... and a raising of awareness can be freeing and empowering as long as it happens in a non-shaming way.
You may feel you'd benefit from working with a professional coach in raising awareness of your situation ensuring it happens in an empowering way. If you do, I'm here to help. I know how challenging change in relationships can be... What it takes to create a change in a dynamic that has been there for years.
Positive and meaningful connections are one large part of wellbeing and happiness. Multiple models that measure a persons happiness include relationships. The PERMA model (Seligman, 2011), and the Psychological Wellbeing model (Ryff, 1989), both include positive relationships.
If you're most interested in improving in some way, or enhancing the quality of these connections... or maybe even increasing the number of these connections... then you can use this worksheet to create ideas and motivation towards this.
4. Long term dreams planning sheet (10 dreams and first steps)
If you prefer a copy of this where you can put in your own titles and instructions and use it in different ways you might want to download the free template.
This worksheet which is quite similar to the "long term dreams, short term goals" one above. However there are key differences. This one zones in 10 of your long term dreams rather than 30.
If you've already done the one above and chosen 30 long term dreams, you may want to choose the ten most important in this one. It also includes an extra planning element in that you can start to think about when you'll start and reach each one making them more real.
Finally, use this goal setting worksheet to encourage you to choose a few action steps for each of your ten long term goals. This doesn't necessarily mean you'll do them all. It can be helpful in terms of planning and strategy to see everything in one place like this.
If you'd like a little extra support get in touch. I'm a highly qualified coach and goal psychologist and my fees are reasonable because I have strong well-established values. I'd be happy to hear from you.
5. Thinking through a long term dream
There is also a blank version where you can put in your own titles and questions if you prefer.
Once you've established lots of things you want to do, become, have, in the future it can be helpful to explore some of them in more detail. This goal setting worksheet helps you do that.
Maybe you're up for doing one for all of you're dreams that you've decided to put down. Or it could be you decide to focus on a more manageable 10 of your dreams for now. Taking maybe 3 or 5 of your main dreams and using this worksheet might feel better.
Others might prefer to do one now and then come back and do another at a later date and so on. I don't believe one way is better than another. It really depends on your preference and how you work best.
I like to have my whole vision created first and thought through. Inevitably all changes over and over again as things progress but I still find it helpful to work through everything in some detail many times.
At some point, you might realise some helpful patterns. Like there are some common resources needed for many of your dreams allowing you to re-prioritise that. Or that some of your dreams are important for the same reasons whereas others seem to contradict that. These kind of realisations can be great guides.
6. Your goals this year
You may prefer a template of this worksheet without titles and instructions so you can adapt it for your use.
There is something about the start of a new year... It seems to naturally lead people to want to make a fresh start. Maybe you start to think about what your new year's resolutions are... spend a little time thinking about your year ahead...
There is often more than the average motivation and hope around at the beginning of the year... and this is potentially a great opportunity that not many capitalise on! The stats are certainly worrying when it comes to new years resolutions. One study found that only 8% of those who made a resolution reached their goal.
Worrying stuff... but all is not lost! You can increase your chances significantly by making your resolutions into goals by using the goal setting worksheets on this page. It takes a little extra effort but is far more effective. You can also increase your chances ever more by working with me - a highly trained, experienced, and accredited coach. In fact, when the 8% were interviewed about why they were successful one of the main things they mentioned was working with a coach or mentor.
A year is a long time. 365 days. 8760 hours. It makes sense to spend some time thinking about and planning where you'd like to go... what you'd like to change... outcomes you'd be pleased to see...
When using the worksheet above you'll be able to set 5 goals. Feel free to set less and leave some blank or print out two and set more. While using the worksheet above you can bring into focus:
- what 5 things are most important for you to focus on this year
- when you imagine you'll see some positive result in each goal
- what action steps you could potentially take that will cause progress towards your top 5 goals
- you can also tick the box when you've done an action. It's motivational to carry a feeling of "I'm doing it" and "I've done well"
7. Top 3 things you're focusing on right now
Click HERE to download the FREE and high quality printable PDF file for the "top 3 main goals right now" goal setting worksheet. See the blank goal setting template for this worksheet if you want to edit it.
It's not uncommon for my clients to have a few overlapping goals. I've seen it work well and it it being be a big hindrance. Sometimes having multiple things that are all important and all urgent is an unconscious avoidance strategy.
Clients can go around in circles without any concrete steps decided on and made. Often they aren't aware that they're doing this. If I see this happening it's vital I hold them accountable. I will give feedback saying what I'm seeing kindly because it's important to their progress. I'm usually upfront about why I'm giving the feedback which helps. If this is happening with you or someone you're supporting it's important to ask some version of the question, "Which would you like to go for first?". The challenge is to break it down to actions... to make it real.
One option is to first have a go at worksheets 1, 2, and 3. Then from that choose yearly goals. Then from your yearly goals pick 3 to focus on first. Finally from those three choose the one you want to do right now.
If the long term is a bit of a question mark for you (in a way it is for us all), that's ok... Another option is to start with this worksheet and worksheet 6. Rather than worrying about the future, as you progress in the short term you may have realisations about the longer term. As you do, you can share your ideas in the long term dreams worksheet.
None of this is set in stone... Things change... You change... Life can demand significant detours... And even with all this, you can use these goal setting worksheets to support you. If you'd like some support with this feel free to get in touch.
8. Your main goal right now
You no doubt have many hopes for the future... Many things you'd like to work toward. With all of those in mind there is something significant about choosing the main thing to take on first and focus on that in detail...
This goal setting worksheet will help energise you toward something that's important to you... right here, right now.
So, what do you feel is the most important thing for you to tackle right now? Is there something, if you were to achieve soon, that would best open the path wide to your imagined future?
Whatever you decide to focus on... if you start moving in one direction, and you realise later than you have more immediate priorities, feel free to be flexible and change direction... but be sure to try and be aware of your tendencies over time. You might want to keep a record so once in a while you can look for any patterns that empower you with self-knowledge.
If you prefer an empty template where you can choose your own titles and questions, you can download it here.
9. Daily Goal Setting Cards
If you've followed the approach suggested above you'll have a broad, balanced, and long term vision. You'll have thought through it some detail. You'll also have chunked things down and considered what to go for this year, and beyond that what comes first, second, and third.
These little printable cards can can be cut out and used to remind and motivate you about the movement you want to achieve each day. You can use one a day or multiple.
If you want to take your goal progress to another level feel free to book a coaching conversation, on the site dedicated to my one to one coaching business. Obstacles to progress can be tricky and hard to spot... sometimes unawareness of what's happening within you can hold you back. With the support of a highly qualified and accredited coach, you can see yourself more clearly and find your way forward.
My hope is for each person to work out what they most want, to find the confidence that they can do it, and to start and persevere on the journey while taking are of themselves and their wellbeing.
Recommended order of worksheets
If you're thinking of doing more than one goal setting worksheet the question of order becomes important. Doing them all will create the most motivation and forward movement because when your short term and long term are connected and there are insights about how different areas of your life are connected, goal setting is most effective.
- If it's possible, it's a good idea to begin with the end in mind. This means focusing on the long term first. Worksheets that look to broaden and connect your various goals such as roles and goals, and the 7 areas one, can be used to support this process.
- After this, you can use the worksheet that looks in detail at each long term dream. Use this for as many of your dreams as feels right.
- Then you can choose what to focus on this year. You can maybe use the results from the long term vision, short term goals worksheet and your work on each long term goal to guide your choices.
- You can then choose your top 3 goals and time-frames.
- and finally, what your main goal is right now.
- Also, you can use the daily goal cards to set actions and outcomes toward that first goal or if you prefer a to-do list with tick boxes for when done.
If you find it difficult at this stage to think long term, and there are many valid reasons for this being so, feel free to just focus you're energies and efforts on something short term and come back and re-visit the long term later. If you'd like some support in working out what to go for, I'm an accredited coach and would be happy to help.
Last updated: 14/6/22
If you liked the above... you might also like...
New SMART Goal Setting Worksheet
To make sure your goals are SMART you can use this worksheet.
This article describes how to download the high quality printable PDF. You can use the questions to make sure each goal you set is specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timed.
To-do list from WiseGoals
If you love to do lists, this may make you smile...
It comes with a "when will you do it" planning box, and a tick box for when you complete each thing! Use in combo with one of the worksheets above for even greater effectiveness!
Weight Loss Goal Setting Worksheet
If you're interested in losing weight or reducing your body fat percentage you might want to use this worksheet.
This article describes how to download the printable PDF. You can choose either a blank version or the version with an example already entered.
Personal Finances Goal Worksheet
Do you want to get on top of your finances ? For example, by increasing savings or income?
This article shows you how to download a spreadsheet that can be used for this.
Debt Reduction Goal Worksheet
Has the time come to pay off your debts?
You can get super organised with this spreadsheet and work out exactly where you currently stand debt wise.
You can play around with different time-frames of payment and land at a plan that works for you.
Personal Goal Worksheet.
If you're keen to think about the many areas in life you can set personal goals in this worksheet might be useful. You can use this worksheet to brainstorm lots of different ideas. Topics include career, family, friends, health, home, learning, love, money, development, physical, and social.
Read this article to find out how to download the printable PDF.
Budgeting Goal Worksheet.
Would you like to use a worksheet to help you budget you monthly expenses and income?
Having the current reality and cold hard facts lay out in front of us can have a motivational impact and can also unlock creative ideas.
This article will tell you how to download the free spreadsheet.
References
Downey, M (2014). Effective Modern Coaching: The principles and art of successful business coaching. LID Publishing.
Hefferon, K., & Boniwell, I. (2011). Positive psychology: Theory, research and applications. London: McGraw-Hill.
King, L. (2002). The Health Benefits of Writing about Life Goals. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 27(7):798-807.
Ryff CD. Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being. J Pers Soc Psychol. 1989;57:1069–1081
Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Free Press.
Seligman, M. E. P., Steen, T. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005). Positive psychology progress: Empirical validation of interventions. American Psychologist, 60, 410.
James Stevenson is the owner of WiseGoals.com. Living in the UK, but also working internationally on-line, James is also a highly qualified, experienced, and accredited trauma-aware wellbeing coach at TraumaAwareCoaching.co.uk. He works with clients in a future focused and solution orientated way by exploring what the good life or a flourishing life might look like for them. Harnessing that motivation, obstacles that come with trauma like the toxic inner critic, self-blaming, self-judgement, fear and avoidance, anxiety, depression, and intense and confusing emotions are worked through. More about James here.
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