MY GOALS

Big Secret

We—the adults in your life—parents, teachers, coaches, priests, rabbis, relatives—

  • cannot make you learn

  • cannot make you become your best self

  • cannot make you discover all you are capable of achieving as a scholar, an athlete, a creator

  • cannot make you become a good person

We all may want the very best for you, but you are now old enough to decide whether you learn about the world (or not), strive to become you best self (or not), are curious to discover all you are capable of (or not), and whether you become a good person (or not).

The course your life takes from here on out is, for the most part, the course you choose.

REFLECT

DON’T WRITE YET!

Take a few minutes to reflect on the last sentence in the section above.

The course your life takes from here on out is,
for the most part,
the course you choose.

What do you choose?

DON’T WRITE YET!
• REFLECT •

Do you want to learn about the world? — it’s your choice

  • What are you curious about?

  • What might you need to learn to get where you want to get in life?

  • The Viking god Odin sacrificed his right eye for wisdom — what are you willing to “sacrifice” to learn what you want to learn?

  • Or do you think learning is a waste of time, that there are way better ways to spend your time?

DON’T WRITE YET!
• REFLECT •

Do you want to become your best self? — it’s your choice

  • What might your best self look like?

  • Can you see you as your best self?

  • What do you look like?

  • What kind of person are you?

  • Or is becoming a “best self” a silly idea?

DON’T WRITE YET!
• REFLECT •

Do you want to discover your limits? — it’s your choice

  • If you’re interested in math, or writing, or science — are you curious how good you might get if you put your heart and soul into it?

  • If you’re interested in art or music or dance — are you curious how good you might get it you practiced?

  • If you’re an athlete — are your curious how good you might get with dedicated practice?

  • Are you curious what you might create in your life?

  • If you are a leader in some way — are you curious if you could be the best leader you could be?

  • Or are “discovering limits” for other people, not you?

DON’T WRITE YET!
• REFLECT •

Do you want to be a good person? — it’s your choice

  • What is a good person?

  • Where do self-control, respect, being polite fit in?

  • Is honesty important?

  • Is it important to be trustworthy?

  • How might your reputation fit in to being a good person?

  • Or is becoming a good person a “pipe dream” — people are just who they are and there’s nothing they can do about it?

DON’T WRITE YET!
• REFLECT •

Close your eyes

  • Ask yourself: What are my goals?

  • Not my parents’ goals for me. Not my teachers’ goals for me.

  • What are my goals for me?

TIME TO WRITE

The questions above are to get you thinking.

You may structure your essay however you see fit.

We hope you take pride in your “My Goals” essay.

We hope you will take pride reading it aloud to your teachers and classmates, and sharing with your parents.

But we cannot make you take pride in these things.

Taking pride in who you are and who you wish to become is in your hands.