Goals are an essential part of the assessment phase in CBT. Having clear goals helps to structure treatment and track progress. Express your goals as "Start" goals — goals that take you towards what you want, rather than "Stop" goals that focus on avoiding what you don't want. Well-defined goals follow the SMART framework below:
| Goal | Small steps to achieve the goal | New skills and learning | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📋 Worked examples — for reference | |||
| To learn how to manage my panic attacks and re-engage in travel, exercise, work and social activities within a three month period. | To take a 30 minute walk from home each day. To go to the gym for 30 minutes twice weekly. To increase the number of stops on my tube journey from 1–4 within four weeks. To sit in a busy coffee shop on my own for 30 minutes. | To understand why my anxiety attacks happen when I am on my own or away from home. To learn techniques to handle negative thoughts when I am anxious. To learn how to ground myself when I feel physically weak or faint. | |
| To improve resilience and assertiveness when dealing with difficult situations. | To make eye-contact when talking in meetings. To take the initiative to say hello to unfamiliar work colleagues each morning. To organise a feedback meeting with my boss every two weeks. | To understand why I feel so inadequate. To learn how to replace self-critical thoughts with a balanced and respectful perspective. To develop assertive communication skills. | |
| ✏️ Your goals — add as many rows as you need | |||
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