Life goals are what we want to do, and they are much more important than simply "what we must do to live." Unlike everyday activities or short-term goals, they affect our long-term actions. They don't have a single psychological meaning and aren't solely a psychiatric concept, but they do assist us in determining what we want to feel in terms of our beliefs.
They can also take several different forms because they are personal goals. However, they provide us with a sense of mission and keep us accountable as we search for peace and well-being—for our best lives.
Why Should We Set Goals in Life?
Lots of us have dreams. We know what makes us happy, what we’d love to try out, and we may have a vague idea of how we’d go about it. But setting clear goals can be beneficial in several ways, above and beyond wishful thinking: here are a few.
- Setting Goals Can Clarify Our Behaviors
- Goals Allow for Feedback
- Goal-setting Can Promote Happiness
- They Encourage Us to Use Our Strengths
Life Goal Ideas: A List of Goals to Achieve in Life
Life objectives must be meaningful by definition, and meaning is subjective. In that regard, it's probably more practical to consider different categories or forms of life goals before listing possible bucket list items.
According to Kasser and Ryan (2001), therefore, there are two types of life goals, and these relate to our well-being in different ways:
- Intrinsic goals relate to emotional intimacy, personal growth, and helping others. They are believed to be aligned with our needs as humans, reflecting our inherent desire for self-knowledge and more fulfilling relationships (Maslow, 1943).
- Extrinsic goals are more culturally defined and less about our nature as human beings, encompassing things like our physical appearance, social standing, status symbols, and wealth.
Research suggests that intrinsic life goals are related to greater happiness, self-actualization, vitality, and satisfaction with life, compared with extrinsic life goals (Ryan et al., 1999; Niemiec et al., 2009).
But at the end of the day, evidence also shows that the content of our goals may be less important to our well-being than our reasons for pursuing them. Having the ‘right’ reason for goal pursuit—irrespective of the aspiration itself, that is—has been found to contribute to our well-being, and the opposite applies (Carver & Baird, 1998).
Intrinsic Life Goals
These satisfy the needs that stem from being human—including our psychological and self-fulfillment needs, based on Maslow’s Hierarchy (1943).
Life goals based on the former might include:
- Having a loving marriage or a trusting relationship with your significant other;
- Finding and keeping a healthy work-life balance, with time for friends and family;
- Living with integrity, being honest and open with others;
- Inspiring others through your beliefs and actions;
- Being a great listener so that others can turn to you; or
- Becoming an expert in your field and helping others.
Self-fulfillment needs-based goals could entail:
- Coming up with a new invention that reflects your creative abilities;
- Being a successful entrepreneur and running your own business;
- Creating your own personal brand for your work;
- Graduating with a Master’s or Ph.D. in something;
- Learning a new language; or
- Picking up a ‘hard skill’ and mastering it.
Extrinsic Life Goals
Extrinsic goals aren’t necessarily material, but because they are generally ‘wants’ rather than human needs, they are easier to come up with. They require less self-reflection, for example:
- Owning the very latest Tesla;
- Becoming a millionaire;
- Getting a big promotion or being in a senior position at work;
- Starring in a movie;
- Having your own workshop/studio or
- Visiting every country in Europe.