How to achieve your financial goals

When creating financial goals, it’s best to start by knowing what’s most important to you. What do you want your money to do for you?

Once you understand how to create financial goals, sticking to your money plan requires a lot less effort. Budgeting is not just a means to an end.

Why

Without a clear ‘why’, it is impossible to stick to any money management plan. Goals should align with what is most important to you in life. As we age, change jobs, or our family situation changes, the reasons we want to do certain things with our money will also change.

When

Your when will be decided by either a hard deadline, kids, school, travel, or buying a home. Part of being successful when creating financial goals is being disciplined and committed to a date.

Success should always be considered when you sit down to create financial goals. Setting yourself up to fail from the beginning will only deter you from remaining committed to managing your money smartly.

What

You will need to change something about how your money is currently being budgeted in order to reach your goal. Creating financial goals and being successful involves being realistic about what adjustments you are willing and able to make.

A change could be as simple as paying extra off your mortgage or adjusting your weekly spend on groceries and social activities.

You will need to have the right money management system to help you stick to your goals. Having the right system will help you stay on track and allow you to monitor your progress.

Review

How often should you review your performance? It depends on what type of goal you’ve set, how much money you need and how long it will take you to get there.

The good news is that creating financial goals isn’t rocket science. You can do it! It’s just a matter of working out what’s most important to you and being realistic in your ability to achieve these goals based on what you know today!