Goal Setting Part II: Collaboration
In Part I of this series on goal setting, we covered how outcome, performance and process goals impacted performance improvements, based on the findings in the meta-analysis by Williamson and colleagues (2022).
As a recap, when comparing how the different goal types positively impacted performance, the authors found that:
Process Goals > Performance Goals > Outcome Goals
You can find more details about the three goal types and their impacts on performance in Part I, but for now, I will be moving on to other topics related to goal setting that were found in the meta-analysis, starting with the effect of collaboration.
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Collaboration
When reviewing this paper, there are a lot of different findings that could be discussed and highlighted, but one area that stood out to me is what I would call collaborative goal setting.
On page 1063, the authors wrote:
“Although goals produced significant effects when set by the researcher or self-set by the participant, researcher-set goals were significantly more effective.”
This was followed up with:
“Goals only approached significance when set cooperatively by researchers, coaches or participants.”
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Now, when looking at the first statement, the fact that research-set goals were better than participant-set goals is not necessarily all that surprising if you can imagine the context. The reason this may be happening is that the participants may have little-to-no experience with the activity that is being used for the experiment (e.g., throwing darts), whereas the researcher has observed many individuals with similar experience levels (or lack thereof) take on the activity. Therefore, the participants might not know what to focus on or what might be reasonable or unreasonable when setting goals.
As athletes gain experience and move along the spectrum from novice to expert, this dynamic may weaken considerably, but there is something that is worth keeping in mind.
Experts can also be novices.
For example, earlier this year I was speaking about goal setting with a group of strength and conditioning coaches. This particular group of coaches was unique as the majority of their athletes were professional/elite endurance athletes.
However, while the athletes may be experts at their sport, many were much more novice in the realm of strength training, which may diminish their ability to effectively set goals in this particular capacity. Therefore, the coaches’ expertise could be substantially helpful and impactful if they worked collaboratively with the athletes to help them set goals.
Having said that, I did not advise coaches to simply set goals for these athletes. Instead, I suggested that the coaches regularly check in to see what goals the athletes have set for themselves and whether those goals would align with what the coaches might have suggested, if asked.
If they find themselves pretty closely aligned, great. If there happens to be a pretty big delta, then this gives a chance for the coach to ask questions and get more information on how the athlete developed this particular set of goals. This will hopefully encourage more open dialogue and collaboration, leading to better and more effective goal setting practices.
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On the flip side, what about the athletes’ perspective?
As athletes, it is important to remember that our experience and expertise may vary based on the context. When we work with coaches and experts to help us improve, we should encourage them to assist us in the goal setting process so that we can increase its chances of having a positive impact on our performance.
I have often used an analogy where I suggest that an athlete is the CEO of their own improvement.
But like a CEO of a company, they cannot be an expert in every capacity, so they need to bring in others to help advise and counsel them in ways that can help their work towards performance improvements. The athlete CEO is left with making the final decisions that align with their goals and vision, but this collaborative process can help them better understand the path they need to take to improve their chances of success.
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A story about collaborative goal setting:
Over twenty years ago, I remember a story that my coach (at the time) told me about an athlete he was working with who had ambitions of racing well at the Ironman World Championship in Kona, HI. One day, the coach asked the athlete to write down the time he thought he was capable of running in the marathon leg of the race. The coach said he would simultaneously write down what he thought the athlete was capable of and then they would both reveal their answers to one another at the same time.
They both proceeded to write down their time predictions.
They each showed each other their answers.
Their answers matched each others’ exactly.
What stood out the most to me was that their time predictions were five minutes faster than the current run course record (at the time). Not only was it a time that had never been run before, but it was beyond the current mark by a considerable margin.
I always thought that this story was sort of a prime example of what it means for athletes and coaches to be on the same page with one another. While I had not necessarily kept this story in mind as an example of collaborative goal setting, I do think it fits quite well.
Even if you are not in the business of trying to break run course records and win world championships, you can still gain a lot from adhering to the same basic tenets of setting goals collaboratively, soliciting advice and counsel from trusted experts, and keeping an ongoing and open dialogue with your team.
References
Williamson, O., Swann, C., Bennett, K. J. M., Bird, M. D., Goddard, S. G., Schweickle, M. J., & Jackman, P. C. (2022). The performance and psychological effects of goal setting in sport: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 17(2), 1050–1078. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750984X.2022.2116723