Kelly Cotter, psychology professor, said college is a very important and time-sensitive part of a person’s life; get as much adventuring into those four years as possible, she said.

Cotter said some life goals can only be completed at a young age.

She said if an individual waits until it is too late to complete these goals, the psychological effects on the person would definitely be damaging.

“Once we reach old age, we tend to reflect on our lives through the process of “life review’ and the people who cannot let go of the things that they did not accomplish end up feeling more depressive or anxiety symptoms and a less of a sense of fulfillment,” Cotter said.

Cotter said any time in life is the perfect time for people to do what they want &- time depending.

There are opportunities that present themselves throughout life, she said, but some are limited to the younger years.

“Some goals are going to be more feasible in younger life while others more feasible in older life,” Cotter said.

Clearly, the goals created in young adulthood will be different from those we create as adults, Cotter said.

She said the most effective way to achieve goals would be to set up a plan and try to make sure to follow the steps necessary to complete these goals.

For example, when a person is older and more financially stable, that person might be ready to fulfill goals related around travel, Cotter said.

Whereas having a goal like having children is not biologically possible for an older woman and is time-sensitive, she said.

“A woman cannot conceive when she is 65, so that might be a better goal achieved when you’re younger,” Cotter said.

Lisa Jorgensen, parks and recreations professor, agrees with Cotter and said she believes that completing goals should not be limited to college years.

Nonetheless, she said college is a time to achieve a number of goals given that the amount of opportunity at this age is endless.

However, Jorgenson said, completing goals during this timeframe depends on the individual and the ways in which that person attempts to achieve them.

“There is not a time frame for this list (of goals),” Jorgenson said. “As we go through life experiences, we know that our thoughts, experiences and our values evolve and change our goals.”

Cotter suggests that coming to terms with the decisions that we have made and being happy with them will provide a sense of fulfillment and accomplishment no matter what sense of trajectory was taken.

Jorgenson suggests using personal instinct to “seize the moment” when it comes to decisions regarding life goals.

“When you get to the end of the road and it is what you are supposed to do, keep traveling. If it is not, there are always other roads to continue on,” Jorgenson said.

Jorgenson said recognizing achievements is also an important aspect of achieving goals. It is important to recognize what has already been done and to be proud of such feats – if students recognize accomplishments they will go far, she said.

She said even mundane goals like getting a degree should be rewarding; simply working toward a degree, she said, is an accomplishment in itself and to be proud of the all that was done to get in one’s current position.

“Regrets do not do us any good overall,” Jorgenson said. “We worry more about having regrets than actually having regrets to worry about – which can be avoided altogether by a little bit of proactive behavior early on.”

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