I now think differently.
FINANCIAL GOAL SETTING 101:
STEP 1: CHOSE A REALISTIC GOAL
- When I first started with "financial goal setting" it was overwhelming. I would set goals that I could never follow through on like "I will buy a house in 2 years" or "I will double my income by the end of the year" ...in the end, it was a big FAIL.
- Set REALISTIC goals- my first goal I actually followed through on was: "I will not buy lunch today at work". It was small, but it felt good that I was successful :)
STEP 2: WRITE YOUR GOAL DOWN
- Writing down my goals made a huge difference. I went to Wal-Mart and bought a cheap notebook, every financial goal I made I wrote in that book. I would also write my goals on little post-it notes to remind me to stay on track!
-You can also keep track of them online or by using a word processor.
-It allows you to go back and see which goals worked and which didn't.
STEP 3: TRACK YOUR PROGRESS
- If I saved $1 that day I wrote it down, spent $10 - wrote it down. At first it was a pain in the butt and time consuming, but it did become easier!
- It made me become ACCOUNTABLE my money- which was a foreign concept to me until I started my goals.
-Before I had no idea where my paycheck- and it's pretty scary now that I think about it.
STEP 4: REVISE OR ADD ON TO YOUR OLD GOALS
-Always revise your goals or add on to them to adjust to your financial current situation.
- For example, my budget for gas used to be $30/week. Now with the rising gas prices I have had to change it to $40/week.
- I love this one. Give yourself a reward each time you reach one of your goals!
-When I reached my goal of putting $1000 into my tax-free savings account, I went out for dinner to my favourite restaurant :)