This paper presents a method for solving nonlinear structural optimization problems using goal programming techniques. The method can be used as a conceptual design tool since goal programming removes the difficulty of having to define one equation as the objective function and the rest as constraints. The developed algorithm uses the linear goal programming techniques with successive linearization for the nonlinear equations to obtain the solution for the nonlinear goal optimization problems. The linear goal programming method with the steps required to obtain the goal programming solution are discussed. The linearization of the general nonlinear optimization problem along with the flow chart of the algorithm are presented. In order to demonstrate the formulation of the nonlinear goal optimization problem and the use of the method, as a design tool, an illustrative example of a three-bar truss structure is included.