Goal setting is an important part of sport. It endows our effort with direction. It creates benchmarks by which success is measured, be it a single event, an entire season, or the span of a career.

For triathletes, goals are invariably about time. After all, racing the clock is the essence of time-trialing. Individuals making their initial foray into the triathlon world probably shouldn’t have so narrow a focus. In fact, a psychologically healthier approach would be to take a list of goals to the swim start.

Having a solitary, time-goal sets up a success or failure mentality. First timers may have no real concept of how much actual time they’ll need. Triathletes with a few races under their belt may encounter unfamiliar courses that make estimates difficult. Then there are myriad variables like heat, humidity, hills, blisters, cramps, etc. that can add seconds, minutes, or worse. Why view a race as a failure because a strict time limit wasn’t met when the effort required to merely finish should be celebrated?

Elite triathletes often have more narrowly defined goals that revolve around winning and setting personal bests.  Even they could benefit by widening the goal horizon a bit.  There's nothing wrong with setting high achievement standards, but it's wise to include some challenging but achievable intermediate steps as well.  When it comes down to an "all or nothing" proposition, well, you know what the result normally is.

Alternatively, compose a set of goals. If you're a beginner, start with the most basic and easiest to meet that you can imagine, such as "just to have fun." Next, add a goal only slightly more challenging, perhaps merely "finishing." Competitive age groupers and elites would naturally start with something higher, although at times it seems they have to relearn how to have fun.   Keep adding increasingly challenging steps all the way to the seemingly unreachable. When finished, your list should contain ten or more objectives.

As race day arrives, the purpose then becomes to see how far up the list you can manage. Sure, the first few may be gimmies, but if the list was constructed properly, you’ll keep progressing to the inevitable point of failure, if you opt to call it that.  If you manage to make it all the way through, you either had a career day or need to increase the level of difficulty for the next event.  This technique puts a much more positive spin on the art of goal-setting. Looking back at the five or six goals you met is far more encouraging than coping with a solitary "make or break" ambition you failed to achieve.

This practice lends itself to any ability level and can even be applied to an entire season's goals. In fact, this technique functions well in goal-setting environments in other facets of life.  Give yourself a break and make the next race one from which you bring away a sense of achievement, regardless of your finishing time or place.