Focus on the Process
Setting goals you can actually control — a short, practical tool from Expedition Psychology.
Why the process matters more than the outcome
When something matters to us, it is natural to fix our attention on the result — passing the assessment, winning the place, hitting the grade, landing the job. Those outcome goals are genuinely useful: they give us direction and can be strongly motivating. But they are only ever partly in our control. Conditions, other people, timing, and luck all have a say.
Your process goals are different. They are the actions within your control — what you do, where you put your attention, and how you respond when things get hard. Anchoring on the process is one of the most reliable ways to build confidence, steady your nerves, and keep your focus where it is actually useful, especially under pressure.
Over-focusing on the outcome tends to work against you. Because the result is not fully yours to command, fixating on it quietly raises anxiety and can knock your confidence when progress feels slow. The practical stance is simple: use the outcome to point the way, then live in the process.
This worksheet gives you two ways to do that — one for a single session, one for a longer-term goal. There are no wrong answers here. Approach it with curiosity and a little kindness towards yourself.
Process goals
The actions you take, how you focus, and how you respond — repeatable behaviours you can fully own.
Outcome goals
The results you are aiming for. Good for direction and motivation — but shaped by factors beyond you.
How to use this worksheet
Choose the mode that fits. Use Short session before a single event, or Longer-term goal for a project, qualification, or season.
Name a few process goals you can genuinely control — the specific things you will commit to doing, regardless of how it turns out.
Your answers save only in this browser, on this device — nothing is sent to us or stored online. Return any time to continue, or turn saving off with the switch at the top.
When you're ready, select Download as PDF at the top to keep, print, or share a finished copy.
What's inside
Read the short introduction above, then work through whichever mode fits. The dots fill in as you start each part.
Set your process goals
Pick the mode that fits what's in front of you. Fill in either — or both — and switch between them at any time.
Set the scene & your process goal
The one controllable thing you'll commit to doing over the next hour or day — regardless of how it turns out.
Keep it specific and yours. A process goal might look like:
- Keep my breathing slow and steady.
- Commit fully to each attempt.
- Speak at a measured pace.
- Refocus after any mistake within one breath.
Reflect
Decide in advance what a good effort looks like — so the result doesn't get the last word.
Name the outcome — and why it matters
Outcome goals give direction and can be strongly motivating. Name yours, then keep it in its place.
Outcome goals — passing the diploma, winning the race, hitting the grade — are useful for direction and motivation. But they're only partly in your control, and fixing on them can raise anxiety when progress is slow. So: name the outcome, then translate it into the process behaviours you can control day to day — and keep your attention there.
Build the process that gets you there
Translate the outcome into repeatable behaviours you can control — then break the horizon into checkpoints.
Keep your attention on the process
When the outcome feels far away, the process is what keeps you moving.
You can't always control the result. You can always control how you show up.
Come back to this worksheet before your next session, or whenever the outcome starts to crowd out the process.
