one's goal

[sajacas]

Hey guys,
I would just like to apologise if I offended anyone with my post- I did not mean to tell anyone that they can’t speak English, British or otherwise. I only meant to comment that the use of ‘one’ is old-fashioned and has certain connotations. I like the idea of language communities and language as a social construct which means that all members of the group jointly own the language. So, looking back at my post I was wrong to say that what is right for me is right, and correct for British English.

I’m defending myself as a competent speaker and a teacher here. As a teacher while I am quite happy to teach students to recognise and understand that ‘one’ can be used as a pronoun, I would not prompt them to try to use it because it is an over-complication and antiquated.
As a competent speaker and a member of this language community I don’t want to propagate class distinctions, and I view using ‘one’ in this way as reflecting class distinctions. I know that people use it, whole groups of people use it, and if you are happy to, go for it- but it is not part of my English. If I were to use it in this way it would be an act of pretension because I am not a member of that group. In the same way that adopting a ‘gangsta’ style would be a pretention.
Globalisation, the rise of the internet, the prominence of US media exposes us all to more different varieties of English; they are out there and they are and they are coming in blurring the lines between British/American/Indian etc English. Given the extremely blurred lines it is hard to get territorial about what is correct, or British or American.
So again, I was wrong to say that what is right for me is right, and correct for British English.

Best Wishes,
Sarah

[svartnik]

So again, I was wrong to say that what is right for me is right, and correct for British English.

It is nothing serious, really. That is my opinion and I hope I will not have to apologise for it.
It clearly comes through to me, and I am sure to anyone else, that your primary intention was to share your views with others and that the last thing you wanted was trouble. Keeping that in mind, your comments were at worst ill-conceived and at best debatable. Nothing else. I hope my comments will help to put your mind at rest. Keep posting in the positive spirit.

[RonBee]

So the Queen can say ‘One must work hard to achieve ones goals’ (no apostrophes in possessives).

I was unaware that the British omit the apostrophe to indicate the possessive of one. In AmE the list of possessives (without an apostrophe) does not include ones. That is, instead, the plural of one. Instead, the list is:

hers
his
its
ours
theirs
yours

NOT:

her's
hi's
it's
our's
their's
your's

[RonBee]

Try:

With hard work you can achieve your goals.

or

If you work hard you can achieve your goals.

[Pedroski]

Personally, Sajacas, I think you should do 2 hours detention and write 'One loves one's American friends.' 200 times! Or buy me a beer!

Did you choose sajac(k)as(s) intentionally? It's very funny!

[Raymott]

The indefinite "one" is another source of trouble and is frequently the cause of disagreeable scenes. Such a sentence as "One loves one's friends" is considered by some persons to be stilted and over-formalized, and such persons insist that "One loves his friends" is permissible. It is not permissible, however, because "one" is indefinite and "his" is definite and the combination is rhetorically impossible. This is known as hendiadys and was a common thing in Latin. Rare examples of it still exist and are extremely valuable as antiques, although it is usually unsafe to sit or lie down on one.

James Thurber
Ladies' and Gentlemen's Guide to Modern English Usage

One hopes this helps!

Algernon: Of course, one loves his friends!
(Cynthia and Cecily titter between themselves)
Cynthia: Oh Algy, you are such an outrageous card. You know very well that "one" is indefinite and "his" is definite and the combination is rhetorically impossible. Hehe. Honestly, Cecily dear, one can't take him anywhere!"

Here is something that would cause disagreeable scenes these days: Calling a book Ladies' and Gentlemen's Guide to Modern English Usage