Have you started this year with great intentions to lose weight, quit smoking and exercise more or keep some other resolution? Will your great intentions last beyond the end of the first month? Often, we fail to succeed at something because we do not set goals. Target Assistant, from Capricorn Project, lets you set a goal, map out steps to achieve the goal and offers feedback to monitor and motivate your progress.
How does it work? You begin by setting your target. For example, let’s use losing weight. You enter “lose weight” as your target and enter a date by which you would like to achieve your weight loss. You then enter a target parameter –weight, 150 pounds.
Next, you set an action plan to achieve the goal. You will exercise for thirty minutes per day, five days per week. On Mondays you will eat vegetarian meals. You need to drink eight cups of water per day. You set these behaviours as actions, and they can be time specific, with reminder alarms.
The Monitor Panel gives you feedback on your progress and the effectiveness of your action plan. As you check off items in your action plan, the details are posted to the Monitor Panel. You can see how you are progressing day by day, with a place to enter milestones and get some basic graphic feedback on your plan.
The final screen –the Persistence Panel— helps to motivate and focus your efforts. You can set options for a wake-up reminder of your goal and the action items for the day. The Good Night function provides feedback how you performed through the day. There is even a box where you can specify how and when to reward yourself for your achievements.
Target Assistant presents a largely graphic interface to the user. The screens don’t follow standard Palm conventions, but are fairly intuitive. Large icon buttons at the bottom of the screen make it easy to switch between panels. Each icon button also has a progress bar that gives a snapshot of your current progress. As well, each screen has a question mark icon that takes you to detailed help files with a single tap.
On the downside, Target Assistant allows you to track only a single goal at a time. If you want to track goals in multiple areas, you need to upgrade to Tracker Assistant Pro. This is a handheld-only product; not desktop companion. However, the interface makes it easy to enter data. The current version comes bundled with a handful of pre-built goal templates.
Target Assistant goes beyond where many goal setting programs stop. It is an easy to use, powerful piece of software. Within a few minutes of installation you will have a solid start to reaching your goals. Target Assistant may be a “one-trick pony”, but it does that trick very well. Now, I’ve got some weight to lose.
Pros:
- Easy to use graphic interface.
- Will actually help you achieve your goals.
Cons:
- Non-standard screen elements.
Price: $19.95
Web-site: Capricorn Project
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