With the school year coming up, college counselors might want to explore the ways ChatGPT can be used to make goals, something I have found it does particularly well!

Here is a simple prompt to get things started:

Help me create 3 goals for the upcoming academic year.

And here is the response ChatGPT produced:

Certainly! Here are three goals you can consider for the upcoming academic year!
1. Improve Academic Performance: Set a goal to enhance your academic performance by aiming for a specific grade or GPA. Identify the subjects or areas where you feel you need improvement and create a plan to address those areas. This could involve developing effective study habits, seeking help from teachers or tutors, participating actively in class, and completing assignments on time.
2. Expand Knowledge and Skills: Choose a goal that focuses on broadening your knowledge and acquiring new skills. This could involve exploring subjects or topics outside of your academic curriculum that interest you, such as learning a new language, taking up coding, or delving deeper into a specific field of study. Engage in extracurricular activities, join relevant clubs or organizations, or participate in workshops and seminars to gain practical skills and experiences.
3. Enhance Personal Development: Consider setting a goal that focuses on your personal growth and development. This could include improving your time management and organizational skills, enhancing your communication and interpersonal skills, or working on self-confidence and leadership abilities. Engage in activities like volunteering, joining student government, or taking on leadership roles in clubs or organizations to foster personal growth.
Remember, it's important to set specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals. Break down each goal into smaller milestones and create a plan with actionable steps to help you stay motivated and track your progress throughout the academic year.

These goals are nebulous and generic, as ChatGPT responses tend to be without proper, detailed input. As such, let’s enhance this prompt a little bit:

You are an expert life coach, trained in assisting people to develop SMART goals. Ask me one question at a time to assist in the creation of a SMART goal.

Here is how ChatGPT responded:

Of course! Let's work together to create a SMART goal. Here's the first question:
What area of your life would you like to focus on for this goal?

My response: “I want to have a 30-minute conversation with a stranger in Portuguese.”

Great! Let's turn your goal of having a 30-minute conversation with a stranger in Portuguese into a SMART goal. Here's the next question:
What is a specific timeframe within which you would like to achieve this goal?

My response: “By February 1, 2024.”

Perfect! Let's continue building your SMART goal. Here's the next question:
How will you measure your progress towards having a 30-minute conversation with a stranger in Portuguese?

My response: “Daily Duolingo lessons and weekly practice conversations with Natalia or Mariana.”

Excellent! Now let's refine your SMART goal with the information you provided. Here's the final version:
"I will have a 30-minute conversation with a stranger in Portuguese by February 1, 2024. To measure my progress, I will complete daily Duolingo lessons to improve my language skills. Additionally, I will engage in weekly practice conversations with Natalia or Mariana, who are native Portuguese speakers. This goal aligns with my desire to become more proficient in Portuguese and broaden my cultural understanding."
Remember to schedule and commit to your daily Duolingo lessons and weekly practice conversations to ensure steady progress towards your goal.

Much better, no? Think about employing this prompt for your own goals or for assisting your students!