At Centaurus FC, we teach more than just soccer. We believe success comes from building positive habits — whether you’re in cleats or in the classroom.

That’s why learning to set goals is a key part of our program. We want to help players choose goals they’re excited to meet, powered by intrinsic motivation.

Here, we’ll explain a simple, effective CFC Goal Setting process you can help your youth athlete do, step by step, using our Goal Setting Worksheets below.

Start Here: Get Your Goalsetting Forms

**Read the rest of this blog for instructions for each part of the form

Option 1: Fill Out Your Form Online

Fill your form out ONLINE and submit it to us (see buttons below)
You can download a copy of your completed form if you’d like to save it

Option 2: Fill Out Your Form By Hand

To fill out the form BY HAND, download the printable pdf below
Bring it to practice to share or email it to Coach Walter at jouk.soccer@gmail.com

**Once you’ve got your forms, read on for instructions:

Intrinsic Goals vs. Pressure

First, a few words about what Intrinsic Goals are:

They come from inside a player, fueled by their love of the game and passion to learn.
They focus on the learning process.
Examples: “I want to learn two new moves and use them in a game,” or “I want to learn to stay calm when I shoot the ball.”

Youth players will work hard on these goals, because they want to.

Belgian pro player Romelu Lukaku remembers that when he was a child, he loved to watch the VHS tapes his dad recorded of World Cup goals. As a U7 and U8 player, he watched them so many times, that he memorized how each goal was set up and struck into the goal, and tried to imitate them. Today, he holds the record for the 2nd most lifetime goals scored by any European player! A great example of intrinsic motivation at work.

On the other hand, Extrinsic Goals are:

Goals created by someone else or to please someone else: “We have to win this trophy,” “You need to be chosen for the A team,” etc.
They focus on one result.
They feel like pressure. For many young players, these kind of goals can be counterproductive, creating stress that crushes their motivation.

Think of the difference as being motivated by joy vs. motivated by fear.

While kids may work hard for either type of goal, intrinsic motivation is more sustainable over the long term. Why?

Reduced pressure & less fear of failure — Players understand setbacks are part of learning and how to move forward.
Self-esteem — Players work on their own skills rather than comparing themselves to others.
Relationships — If we are not competing against our teammates, we can collaborate with them.

👉🏽 Now we’ll explain filling out the form with all that in mind:

Step 1: Dream It

First, allow your youth player to choose goals they are really excited about.

Examples: I want to be able to juggle the ball 20 times in a row, I want to learn the “Chilena” bicycle kick.

If they’re stuck for ideas, you can ask:

What’s one skill you want to get better at?
Is there something you’ve been wanting to learn?
What talents do you have that you want to grow?

Talk about goals as stepping stones—a tool to help them make their dreams real.

Setting just 1-3 goals for the season is great, so they can focus their efforts.

Step 2: Gather Resources

Here, your player will brainstorm who and what can help them meet their chosen goals.

Examples: coaches, teammates, older players they know, or Youtube tutorial videos.

We want to instill the idea in our players that asking for help from people with knowledge is a great strategy.

**Step 3: Believe It (*For Players Ages U9 and Up)**

This step is a little unusual and may take a few extra minutes, but we think it’s well worth it.

(*We suggest this exercise for players age U9 and older. For younger players, it’s optional, and you are free to try it and tell us how it goes!)

In this step, your child should imagine in detail a moment when they’ve already achieved their goal. This is to help their mind believe the goal is possible. It links the goal with things they’ve already experienced, to make it feel real and achievable.

The story should:

Include things from their normal daily routine: I get to the field and put on my cleats with the green shoelaces.
Be in present tense: Today I am so calm when I shoot the ball in the game, because I have learned the laser focus technique.
Include emotions and sensations (“I feel”): I feel so happy and proud how I stay calm on the field now. I feel the warm sun on my face as I dribble the ball.

Everything in the story should feel joyful, to stoke their enthusiasm.

If you or they can write it down and re-read it as they work towards their goal, that’s even better!

Step 4: Action Steps + Dates

Time for the nitty-gritty: what steps can your child plan to meet their goals? By when?

Example: To learn the Neymar Chop, first I will watch three different Youtube tutorials about that move, by Nov. 20th.

Keep it simple—no more than three or four steps.

Brazilian pro player Bruna Tavares credits her success to breaking goals into parts, like improving her meals and learning to visualize success. “I like to achieve small goals every day in order to get to my main goal,” she told the GOAT Food Blog in an interview.

Step 5: School, Friends, and Family Goal

Here, your child can choose one more goal—this time, off the field. It can be something they’d like to contribute to others, or something they’d like to do that could give them joy.

Examples: I will help my parents cook on Sundays. I will invite a friend over to play once a week.

You might be surprised how much your player gets motivated by contributing to others. Romelu Lukaku credits his success in part to seeing his mom add water to their milk to make a carton last longer. He resolved to practice hard so one day he could buy her all the milk she needed.

Step 6: Team Goal

Last but not least, what could be a good team goal? Here, your child can brainstorm something the team can work on together.

Examples: Speed training to get faster, improving corner kicks, collecting old soccer shoes to donate to players in another country.

All ideas welcome! We’ll go through them as a team and choose together.

Reflection

At the end of the season, we’ll reflect together how our goals went. Did we meet them? What helped? What were some obstacles?

We believe in what Josep Gombau, former coach at Barcelona’s youth training center La Masia, said about forming the world’s top youth players: “It’s not just win or lose. You ask…What can I do to improve? What were my mistakes? It’s more about the process of learning.”

We’re excited to hear our youth players’ goals and support them in their journey to learn new skills this season. Thanks as always for your support of your player and the Centaurus FC program. Happy Goal Setting!

**Additional photos from: Freepik and Warren Fish

Helping Youth Players Set Goals — On and Off the Field