The Power of Big Goals

As the clock winds down for another year, now is the perfect time to think about what you hope to achieve in 2025. But are the goals we set for ourselves big enough and perhaps more importantly, are they the right goals? Today we pose these questions to the eight-time bestselling author, international speaker, and world-renowned expert in positive psychology, Caroline Adams Miller. Caroline’s work is focused on setting big goals for yourself and finding the grit and determination to achieve them, and she begins today’s conversation by sharing details of her latest book, Big Goals – a manual that reveals the science behind the power of Dr. Edwin A. Locke's Goal Setting Theory. Caroline defines “big goals” and how they differ from others before explaining how setting big goals can change a person for the better. We discuss the modern trend of trying to eliminate all stress from our lives and how that has bred a timid generation, helpful tips and tools from the world of applied positive psychology, how learning goals and performance goals manifest in real life, and the roles of happiness and accountability in achieving everything you set out to do. We end with the reminder that hard work often leads to satisfaction and that through healthy competition, we are able to develop resilience, determination, and grit.