Goal Setting and the GRE:

1. Make them bite sized
In the beginning there may seem like there are so many things to learn it can be overwhelming. You have this big goal that you set of getting your desired score on the GRE, but sometimes it may be difficult to know where to start. The key to proper goal setting is make them motivating. You don't want to risk burning yourself out by setting unrealistic goals. Start small and keep your goals bite-sized allowing you to build momentum as you accomplish one after the other.

2. Make them about learning:
For beginners to experts alike, the best kind of goals are learning-based. Instead of focusing on the big picture goal of GRE success, rather shift your focus on the individual steps required to reach such a goal. Again, it's best to keep them small and manageable. It's relatively easy to make your learning goals harder if you find yourself not adequately challenged; it's much harder to reset after grinding yourself into dust with overly ambitious goals. For the absolute beginner, setting your first goal can be as simple as learning about the test format or the types of questions that appear in the different sections. For an advanced student, they can be as more complex; like learning to follow a specific strategy to avoid making certain kinds of mistakes that you noticed in your error log.

3. make them personal:
Is your quant only a bit rusty but your verbal is somewhat lacking? Or instead, do you have no trouble with short reading passages but get totally befuddled by the long ones? Every person is unique and as such, they must choose goals that cater to your own individuality. Thus, your learning goals should be based on your own strengths and weaknesses, spending just enough time studying to keep your strengths sharp while using the rest of your study time to build up your weak areas.

Making your goals personal will also allow you to find ways to succeed despite obstacles. Are you too tired after work on Thursdays and Fridays to study? Try saving these days for reviewing the questions you got wrong during the past week. This will allow you to get some quality studying in without the mentally taxing effort of doing practice problems. Or maybe you can sneak in some studying during your commute by reviewing vocabulary on your phone or doing a few practice problems during your lunch-break.

4. Make them yours:
Some may prefer to set daily goals to strive for while others might prefer pushing to reach a weekly one, allowing you to push harder on days you have more energy. Most important is finding what works for you.
Regardless of your approach, if you own your goals in this manner, you'll find that you'll better be able to find the success you desire on your GRE journey while maintaining the motivation necessary to do so.

If you or someone you know needs help achieving their GRE goals or you are interested in giving back and helping someone achieve theirs, please check out our free GRE Mentorship program: https://gradmentors.org/home-1

Thanks and best of luck on your path to GRE success!