Describe a goal you hope to achieve in the future
A full Band 9 model answer for this IELTS Speaking Part 2 cue card, with the key vocabulary it uses, three Part 3 follow-up answers, and an examiner note on why it scores so highly.
Describe a goal you hope to achieve in the future.
You should say:
- what the goal is
- when you hope to achieve it
- what you need to do to reach it
and explain why this goal is important to you.
You get 1 minute to prepare and should speak for 1-2 minutes. Try it yourself first, then compare with the model answer below.
Band 9 sample answer
A goal I am genuinely committed to is becoming financially independent enough to start a small social enterprise of my own within the next five years or so.
The idea is not simply to run a profitable business, but to build something that addresses a real problem in my community — most likely in education, since that is an area I feel strongly about. I would love to create affordable learning resources for students who cannot access them otherwise.
I am under no illusion that this will happen overnight, and I have mapped out roughly what it will take to get there. In the short term, it means building up both my savings and my skills — gaining solid experience in how organisations are actually run, learning the practical side of finance and operations, and steadily growing a network of people who share the same vision. I also need to keep testing the idea on a small scale before committing to it fully, so that I am building on evidence rather than wishful thinking.
The reason this goal matters so much to me is that it brings together the two things I want from my working life: a degree of independence and a genuine sense of purpose. I would find it deeply unfulfilling to spend decades simply chasing a salary. Working towards something that could leave a positive mark, however modest, gives my day-to-day effort a meaning it would otherwise lack, and that, to me, is worth far more than conventional success.
Key vocabulary used
The collocations and idiomatic phrases above that lift the answer into Band 9 lexical resource.
- genuinely committed to
- seriously dedicated to
- feel strongly about
- care deeply about
- under no illusion
- completely realistic
- mapped out
- planned in detail
- wishful thinking
- hoping for something without good reason
- leave a positive mark
- have a good lasting impact
Part 3 follow-up questions
The examiner develops the topic with more abstract discussion questions. Here is how a Band 9 candidate might answer.
Are long-term goals better than short-term ones?
I do not think it is a case of one being better; you really need both. Long-term goals give your life direction and meaning, but they can feel distant and demotivating on their own. Short-term goals break that journey into manageable steps and provide the small wins that keep you going, so the two work best in tandem.
Why do some people fail to achieve their goals?
Often the goals are vague or unrealistic from the outset, so there is no clear path to follow. Just as commonly, people lack the consistency to keep going once the initial enthusiasm fades. External obstacles play a role too, but in my experience the biggest barrier is usually a failure to break a big ambition into concrete, daily actions.
Should parents set goals for their children?
To a point, yes — children benefit from guidance and from learning how to set and pursue objectives. The danger is imposing the parents' own unfulfilled ambitions onto a child, which can backfire badly. The healthiest approach is to help children discover their own goals and then support them, rather than dictating what those goals should be.
Why this is a Band 9 answer
Band 9 features: clear future-oriented structures, precise abstract vocabulary ('a genuine sense of purpose'), a logically sequenced plan, and a values-driven conclusion that fully answers the importance prompt.
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