Did you know that less than 3% of Americans have written goals, and less than 1% review and rewrite their goals on a daily basis?*

If you are concerned that your teenager is going down a path of destruction and making bad choices, it might be a good idea to look at what habits your teenager has and what you can do to have a more disciplined teen.  Most teenagers do not have a clue how to set a goal let alone achieve a goal.  They are not typically taught how to set goals in school.

It’s so very important to help your teenager develop positive habits at an early age.  Why wait until he or she is trying to navigate through life without focus and drive when they are in their 20’s?

Ann and I have been setting goals for several years now and we work with our children to set goals and stay focused on achieving goals.  Now, completing a goal doesn’t always happen, but it’s more about establishing an amazing habit and creating positive benefits throughout the journey.

Ann’s kids set a goal to save money for their own laptops and even decided on the exact type of computers they wanted.  They each figured out how much they would need to save in order to purchase a laptop and saved for several months.  When they had enough money, Ann took them to the store to buy the computers they had wanted for awhile.  Setting this goal had so many benefits.  It kept them focused on what they wanted, the importance of saving money and learning how much they needed to do in order to earn what they needed.  The values and lessons it took for them to achieve their goal will stay with them for the rest of their life.  And better yet, they are already excited to set new goals!

My 10 year old daughter has a goal to have her own dog.  She is so committed to having a dog that she is “role playing” her responsibilities that are required to be a dog owner even before she actually has one.  She is walking friend’s dogs, saving money for the expenses of having a dog and learning all about how to care for a dog.  All the qualities she is learning will not only help her be a good dog owner but will also help her to be a disciplined teenager.

There are so many different goals that teenagers can set.  Anything from academics, sports, hobbies and beyond!  We encourage you to ask your teenager about what he or she would like to have or achieve.  Start a conversation today.  If you are unsure how to help your teenager write clear and specific goals, be sure to get a free SMART Goals Guide at http://MasteringYourGoals.com/offer today.  You will also learn how to create visuals of your teenager’s goals, a very important step to staying focused and motivated.  These are once again, important ways for disciplining teenagers TODAY.

*Based on statements from motivational author and speaker, Brian Tracy.