READY SET GO

Whether trying to lose weight, throwing yourself into work in the bid for a big promotion, or looking to make changes in your personal life, setting goals at the start of the year is a well-worn trope – one that, more often than not, ends in failure. Such failure can lead to disappointment, as well as exacerbating existing narratives about your own inability to achieve the things you want to do, with the wider potential to create negative feelings and poor mental health.

Goal-setting theory was pioneered by American psychologist Edwin A. Locke in his 1968 work, Toward a Theory of Task Motivation and Incentive. Locke argued that specific and measurable goals were more likely to lead to success. And while his theory remains sound, the overly stressed world in which we now live suggests that a healthier, less attached approach to goals might be better for our wellbeing.

“I think the