Goal Setting And
Managing Peer Pressure
The Middle School years are a time period when friends become very important to you. Teenagers have a need to be accepted by their peers. Encouraging or being encouraged to do something by people of our own age is called peer pressure. Peer pressure can be positive or negative. Positive peer pressure could include encouraging a classmate to study for a test or to perform their best at the basketball game. Negative peer pressure occurs when someone encourages somebody to do something that is not productive or healthy, such as lying to parents, cheating, smoking, or staying out past curfew. How a teenager is able to manage this pressure will greatly depend on their level of self-confidence.
Being prepared for how you will handle a variety of situations as a teenager will help you to avoid negative peer pressure. Teenagers need to know what their own beliefs are and what their goals are. These are tough answers to find; yet a blueprint for life is as valuable as finding a goldmine. Goal setting will help you hold yourself to high standards and expectations.
Some questions to ask yourself:
Where are you in your "perfect day"? Where do you want to be at the end of this school year, next year, 5, 10, or 15 years?
Who are your with? What type of person are they?
What type of possessions do you have (car, home, etc.)?
What kind of job do you have in 15 years?
Rate the following goals on the basis of their importance:
3 very important | 2 somewhat important | 1 not very important
- get along well with friends
- get a college degree
- get good grades
- accomplish what my parents feel I can do
- make a contribution to society
- make a positive reputation for myself
- help others
- make lots of money
- have a steady, good paying, long lasting job
My most important goal is:
The best way to reach this goal is to:
Today, I am working on my goal by:
