Have You Updated Your Financial Goals?

A big motivator to better living and better finances is to set attainable goals for yourself. Along with a good budget, a financial goal list is an important part of any financial plan. With no goal to aim toward, people often fall off the wagon when it comes to their money. Since there is no concrete plan developed, it is easy to spending mindlessly and find yourself in debt faster than you thought possible.

Goals Need Regular Review
When you set goals, there is no greater reward than checking off an accomplished goal and adding a new one to the list. You feel as though you have achieved something good and it motivates you to keep moving forward towards the new goal. But it is not enough to ‘set and forget’ what you have established. Times change and so does your financial situation.

Let’s say you get a new job that pays more money. If you haven’t updated your goal sheet, you are likely losing money that could be put into savings. Instead of losing out, you should go back to your goal sheet and see what is still relevant in your life and where the extra pay can be put to good use. By updating your goals regularly, you will stay in touch with what matters to you and your family financially. Staying on track with your finances is key to stability now and in the future.

There is no set time to look over your goals. In fact, the list should be somewhere handy for you to refer to it often. Goals should be comprised of short-term and long-term ideas. For instance, you might be interested in buying a new living room set. This would be short-term goal. Since you will have to save for some time to come up with the cash, you can include your goal into your weekly budget so you’ll know exactly how much time and money you’ll need to save to complete your goal. Notice credit is not an issue because you are planning to purchase with cash. This is a healthy method for big-ticket purchase. Once you have the cash, you can cross off the living room set from your short-term goal sheet and add the new patio set you’ve had your eye on.

For long-term goals, you might add the action steps to saving for retirement. On your list, you’ll be able to write down the steps for saving X amount of dollars over X number of years. As your financial situation changes – you make more money or you switch jobs -you will need to come back to your goal sheet and make adjustments accordingly. You may also find you have to add in more long-term goals that will require some rearranging.

Don’t Give Up
Financial planning is not much different from losing weight or getting in shape. Having goals is a great start but you also need to do the work involved to see results. It can be easy to quit so find the incentives and motivators that keep you going. Generally, you can use your short-term goal list to help keep you in line. Add goals that are attainable and as you continually check them off your list, you’ll be inspired by what you can accomplish and therefore keep moving on to other goals.

Reinvent Your Goals
Your goals are your own personal ideas of what you want to achieve. No one else can dictate what you do or how you get there. Remember too that goals are not always about buying what is next. You need to also look down the road at what you need to achieve like saving for college or retirement. The more you save today, the more you’ll have down the road. Your goals should not be left sitting in a folder in your filing cabinet either. As mentioned, keeping in a place where you can review them regularly will help you to remember where you want to be in 6 months, 5 years, and 20 years down the line.