Hi Boys and Girls,

How is school going? Are you studying hard? I sure am. It’s a little harder this year than last year and I have a lot more kennelwork to do.

I wanted to remind everyone about setting goals. This is a great time to do it. It’s a new school year and you are probably starting new activities. If you read my articles last year, you know that I really believe in setting a goal and working towards it. Some of you sent me your goals. I’d love to hear how you are doing in reaching those goals. For all you new readers, I want to go over what a goal is and how to achieve those goals.

First you need to decide what you want to work towards. Make sure the goal is something you are able to achieve. Then you need a timeline. Can you achieve this goal in a week, a month, a year? Some goals take a long time. Finally, you need to come up with the steps you need to take to achieve your goal. Let me give you an example. As you know I want to make the team at my home and I want to be a lead dog. Well that’s 2 goals so since I already know I made the team (I heard my humans talking), I’m going to set my goal to be a lead dog. While I want to be a lead dog right away, I know I have a lot to learn, so I’m going to say that I’d like to be a lead dog by March. That gives me 6 months of training. So now I have to decide how I’m going to do this. Well, I need to show that I can listen and follow commands, I have to pay attention, I need to show that I can read the trail and avoid dangers. What else do you think I will need to do to be a lead dog?

Now I want you to decide what goal you want to achieve. You can do more than one goal at one time. You could have one goal that you can accomplish this year like making good grades, and you could have a second long term goal like what you want to be when you grow up. Achieving good grades could help you meet your second goal. See how it works? I can’t wait to hear about your goals.

My next article will be about one of my favorite adult humans. He set a goal when he was very little and there were some obstacles along the way. He doesn’t have much to do with dog sledding except for running us when he comes to visit. His is a story of what you can accomplish if you work very hard.

So work hard, set those goals, and I’ll see you on the trail.

Gypsy

PS- remember if I made the team, my humans said I could have a blue harness??? Well there’s a rumor going around the kennel that my harness has been ordered. Just stay tuned for pics.