“If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal,” Albert Einstein said. As teenagers, we don’t really think twice about what our future is going to be. But in order to become successful, having a goal that will lead you to where you want to be is very important to all of us. People with clear, written goals achieve far more in a short period of time than people without them could ever imagine.

Set goals that will lead you to happiness in life, or simply just a destination. The most important thing is that your goal is realistic and doable. Have a goal that makes you want to jump out of bed every morning. As said by Steve Jobs, “ The only way to do great work is to love what you do.”

Now, think about all of those times that you sit around at home having nothing to do. Goals keep you focused, knowing exactly what has to be accomplished and cuts away the unnecessary sitting around time.

Having a realistic goal will keep you focus on the things that are actually important instead of wasting your time on pointless things. For example, I tend to wander off into space when I study for my tests. But having the determination of making an 100 on the test seem to pull me back from space every time.

Personally, setting goals for myself gives me motivation to whatever I’m planning to do. It gives you something to focus on and tells you where to put 100 percent of your effort into. This is what develops motivation.

Do you ever have to deal with procrastination? Waiting to the last minute to start writing your paper? Goals tend to act as a reminder in your head and buzz constantly reminding you what you’re suppose to accomplish that day. That way, you are forced to make yourself accountable to finish your task for the day.

Try to take small steps everyday; break down long-term goals into everyday work. A goal without a plan is just a wish, you should always strive for progress, instead of perfection. Every little step you take will eventually add up to the final success.

Perhaps your goal is to get accepted to your dream college, let’s say it’s Harvard. This is an example of a long term goal, but in order to get accepted, you have to work hard everyday to achieve it. Start out with studying more for your tests and getting straight A’s this semester; maybe next time you can try to be in the top ten percent of your class. Break your goal down, strive for progress.

The thing is, don’t be lazy and get distracted from your goal. Procrastination will get you nowhere in life. Don’t dream of success, actually be the best that you can be and the do the best that you can do to pursue it.

It was only after I set a goal for myself, that I realized how much potential that I actually had within me. It made me stretch beyond my normal self and reached new heights in my life.

Goals are there to keep you on track. As teens, we think it is still too early for us to think about our future, but no, college is right around the corner. As Albert Einstein said, if you don’t want to one day look back and says I could’ve done better, tie your dream to a goal, make a plan, step by step, if you believe you could, you will.