Have you detected that if your dreams don’t scare you, then they are not big enough! But it’s not as easy as it seems to dream big, work hard and achieve goals. Achieving things like financial independents in our life as per your requirement is one of the happiest moments of life. Having desires is a part of life, but successful people do not only desire. They work hard to achieve them. Being financially strong is everyone’s dream, no doubt- I wonder who does not want to be sound by achieving financial goals.
Set your goals higher than they scare you. But setting goals is not enough. One should be focused and stick to the goals until one achieves them. There’s a proper game plan to set and achieve financial goals, so let’s explore things to be independent financially.
What are the Financial Goals?
Usually, people make resolutions and try to focus on them and think these are the ultimate goals. But understanding financial goals is a whole different process. The beginning of sound money habits can be challenging. But once you get addicted to money-making, there’s no going back. Financial goals are defined as the prediction and aim to achieve by your savings and investments of money within one or two decades.
Small things take less time whereas, big financial goals take more time. For instance, if you make a small goal by saving your pocket money and want a fancy attire in your high school, you make a small financial goal that takes less time. But if you want a Rolls Royce, you need to make a big goal and save a large amount of money. So it will take more time and finally, having that car shows how brilliantly you have achieved your financial goal.
Importance of Setting Financial Goals
Nobody wants to live a mediocre and ordinary lifestyle. Gone are the days when people lived a simple lifestyle with basic requirements and left things conventional. Nowadays, everyone tries to get the latest, trendiest and glamourous lifestyle. But without setting financial goals and trying hard to achieve financial goals, it is definitely not possible. The thing won’t change until you want it to, and you can’t do it until you set your aims to achieve.
Financial goals provide a direction to the plans and help you live your dream life. It doesn’t matter what you want to do- buying a high-end apartment or putting the brake on credit card habits, setting goals is a fundamental move.
Don’t forget the famous quote of Suze Orman,
every financial worry you want to banish, and financial dream you want to achieve comes from taking tiny steps today that put you on a path toward your goals. So, try not to give up and place your foot on the first step of success by setting your goals.
Suze Orman
How to Set Financial Goals?
Many people don’t know how to set goals and when it comes to financial goals, they think it is risky than ever. But knowing what you are doing can reduce the risk. Following are the steps that help you set your financial goals and support you to be a victorious person from a mediocre one.
1. Compare your Today and Tomorrow
Assess your current position if you do a job, and figure out how much you can earn per week, per month, or per year. Compare this with the lifestyle that you want. If you want a luxurious lifestyle with a Bugatti and an adorable dog in your mansion, is your current job enough for you to achieve all these goals in the near or farther future. Sit on a table and try to figure out the practical assessment and weigh your future.
2. Short-term and Long-term strategy
Make your short-term and long-term strategy by knowing what’s going to take how much time. The short-term goals need to be made for six months to five years. Long-term goals are the aims for more than ten years. Once you know what you want to do, how to live, and what you can achieve in how much time, you’ll sort things out to achieve your financial goals.
3. SMART strategy
This strategy is much-need to make your plans and goals,
- Specific
- Measurable
- Achievable
- Relevant
- Timely
Timely goals are essential to plan things accordingly. You should know when you will finish college, when you want to get married and when you want to go on a World Tour. Straight up your facts by making things specific. If you feel your goals are not achievable, make them come true because you know the key. Let the aims scare you by being big enough.
Once you set your goals, your mind is clear enough to create a direction. The challenging hurdle is actually knowing and setting the goals. The rest is based on- where there is a will, there is a way proverb.
Benefits of setting financial goals
Sometimes setting a goal is important for life to create a purpose for tomorrow. Because if someone has a goal, he is always involved with it and works towards it. Goals create reasons to live. So it will be the main benefit when we take all kinds of goals.
In financial goals, there are some definite benefits you can get from setting financial goals. We can list them as below.
Financial goals help to create your own plan
Once you start to work for your goals it will automatically drive you to write your own plan because the financial goals create a complex situation.
Generate your own unique strategies
After creating your plan, you will work according to it. But you will face tons of obstacles that scar you and drag you down. At that moment, you have to create your own strategies to win the game.
Financial goals help you to focus on your priorities
After practising for a long time, you can get this benefit from setting your financial goals. Concentration is very difficult at the beginning but you will become addicted once you get on track.
It provides a measurable progress
Progress is a regular thing when we work for a goal. But if we can measure the progress, we can find our weaknesses and talent by measuring the progress. So financial goals provide that benefit with measurable progress.
Those are always motivating you
Setting up goals that motivate you is one of the habits of millionaires. Sometimes you will have to come through a lot of difficulties. But if you believe in yourself and your goals, they will definitely motivate you to keep moving forward until you accomplish the goals.
How to achieve Financial Goals?
Let’s have a look at the strategies desired to achieve the financial goals.
1. Enlist your goals
Those who write down their goals and speak about them can fulfil their dreams. Dreams can’t be achieved until you stick to them. It does not matter what kind of goals you have. You want to pay for the children’s college funds, or you want to build a mansion, or to expand your family business, write it down. Stick to them. Nothing can stop you once you know what you desire and how to achieve it. Nobody can beat those who know how to deal with their failures. A person who is determined to achieve his goals instead of giving lame excuses becomes a legend one day.
While enlisting your financial goals, make sure they follow the SMART strategy. Also, you need to assess that how much time is required? Is your goal short-term, mid-term, or long-term based? It will help you create a timeline and understand the timeframe, so you don’t get exhausted while working hard to achieve your goals. From this strategy, you will already know that how much time will be consumed for the accomplishments. Know your priorities straight.
2. Set a time-frame
To achieve any goals, you must recognize the required time for those goals. In financial goals, we can see three main goals with specific time frames.
- Long-term goals
- Mid-term goals
- Short-term goals
Long-term goals
Long-term goals are some things you need to achieve in a long time frame. So it will require a lot of time and planning. Also, the goal might be a new one that no one has achieved yet. In that case, you will probably have to make tons of mistakes to achieve your financial goal; it will definitely take time. Sometimes breaking your long-term goals into short-term or mid-term is more enthralling as you can accomplish things sooner.
Mid-term goals
Mid-term or intermediate goals are specific targets that require less time to achieve than long-term but more than short-term goals. Financially, most of the goals are mid-term because many financial goals are required a significant time frame.
However, your time management skill really matters here. The time of achieving goals depends on how you spend it. Investing in real estate, share market and saving money for a long time with high interest are some examples of mid-term goals. If you want to balance your lifetime income or the capital for your own business, mid-term goals are perfect for you
Short-term goals
For short-term goals, know that how much time will you have to serve. Your goals should be specific and achievable with the perfect timeframe. The thrill and excitement during the process to achieve financial goals never dies when a person makes short-term goals. . The timeframe is accessible as it relies on 5 to 10-year goals. Then what are you waiting for? Make your plans to achieve your short-term, mid-term and long-term goals now!
3. Create accountability
Everybody needs counselling, advice, and encouragement along the way. Now you have written down your goals and want a straightforward way to achieve them, Right? Look for a reliable and sensible person who knows how to encourage the goals despite making fun and degrading you. Follow the reality check with them. It’s human nature that we want encouragement and appreciation for what we desire to achieve. Cheer your goals with such people who regard you on your achievements and accomplishments. It will sustain your faith in yourself.
4. Figure out your expenses
A budget plan is essential as it gives direction to your money and helps you achieve financial goals. But you should make your mind that excess hard work is needed for the ultimate excess accomplishment. You should figure out your expenses, how much you spend, and how much you save. Saving and investments are the keys to accomplishing financial goals. Do you think it’s okay to have more expenses than you earn? Cut down the extra money that you are not spending but wasting. Spending on necessities is crucial but wasting on extras is nothing.
Cutting down the luxury can compensate for your budget and help you save more and spend less. The ultimate goal should be to be financially stable and rich than to just look rich.
Summary
Be a source of inspiration for people by achieving your desires and becoming financially strong. Make your dreams higher than your fears and work with determination to achieve them because without sticking to the goals, one can achieve nothing. Do not compromise on your goals. Following the strategies to set the goals and achieve them smartly will make you a successful person. When you work on your plan and water your seeds consistently, you will get to watch your success blossom and your plant grow. Keep your eye on your financial goals and trust the process. That is how you can live a meaningful life.
