When planning your financial future, you should always have a goal that you are working towards. These goals will help you determine what choices you make when it comes to spending and saving your money. Here are tips for setting smart financial goals.
WRITE IT DOWN
According to a study, you are 42% more likely to achieve a goal if you write it down. When you write something down, you are forced to think more critically about the goal and how you can get there. Placing it somewhere you can see it every day will remind you what you are working towards.
PRIORITIZE GOALS
You most likely will not be able to accomplish all of your goals at once. This may lead to overlapping goals, not having enough time, or nothing ever being accomplished. Pick the one or two goals that are most important to you and start with those. As you work toward them, you may find yourself being able to add a short-term goal here or there.
MONITOR PROGRESS
As you work towards your goals, you should plan on hitting specific milestones at certain times. For example, if you want to save $3,000 in 5 months, you’ll know that you need to save at least $600 per month. Check in with your goal during this time to make sure you are on target and will hit your goal when you need to.
KEEP TRYING
Sometimes you’ll have to try more than once to achieve a goal and that’s okay. It took Thomas Edison over 1,000 tries to be successful at creating the lightbulb. If one method doesn’t work, try something else. The best way to achieve a goal may not always be the most obvious way.
