Goal setting is one of the simplest yet most effective ways for athletes to build confidence, stay focused, and improve performance. When goals are broken into small, meaningful steps, they naturally create more opportunities for athletes to “stack wins,” and these little wins add up in a big way.

Many athletes set goals such as “get better” or “work harder,” but these are too vague and don’t provide clear direction or any meaningful sign that the goal has actually been met. A more effective approach is to use three simple types of goals that work together to guide improvement and build the habits that help athletes succeed.

Performance Goals (your measurable targets)

Performance goals track your progress, improving shooting percentage, lowering sprint times, adding weight to a lift, or completing more successful reps in a drill. These goals are helpful because they show whether training is actually working.

“Performance goals enhance motivation by providing athletes with clear, objective standards to evaluate improvement.”
— Weinberg & Gould, 2019

Seeing measurable progress is one of the best confidence-boosters.

Process Goals (your daily actions)

Process goals are the most powerful because they focus on what an athlete can control today, such as effort, technique, attitude, and training habits. Examples include using a cue word before reps, staying locked into a warm-up routine, or finishing every drill with intent.

Research consistently supports the value of process goals:

“Process goals are consistently linked to increases in confidence and performance because they direct attention to controllable actions.”
— Kingston & Hardy, 1997

And:

“Athletes who set process goals demonstrate greater persistence and higher-quality practice behaviors.”
— Zimmerman & Kitsantas, 1997

Small, controlled steps create steady improvement.

If you’re new to goal setting, start simple: choose one process goal for the week—something completely in your control and directly related to your sport. Build from there. Small steps done consistently create momentum, and momentum builds confidence.

References

Burton, D., & Weiss, C. (2008). The handbook of sport psychology (3rd ed.). Wiley.

Kingston, K., & Hardy, L. (1997). Effects of different types of goals on processes that support performance. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 9(2), 229–242.

Weinberg, R. S., & Gould, D. (2019). Foundations of sport and exercise psychology (7th ed.). Human Kinetics.

Zimmerman, B. J., & Kitsantas, A. (1997). Developmental phases in self-regulation: Shifting from process goals to outcome goals. Journal of Educational Psychology, 89(1), 29–36.