Achieving your financial goals is important, but it can be tough to know where to start. Here are some tips to help you get started on the right foot.
Goal setting is the first and most important step in financial planning. Before you start investing in securities and other instruments, you need to carefully analyze your financial goals. How to set goals and achieve them?
In this article, we will consider the types of financial goals, and the features of the choice of investment instruments depending on the task. Remember that investing without tasks, deadlines and a lack of motivation, in general,l is a futile process. You will learn to set and achieve financial goals and objectives correctly.
What Is A Financial Goal
Setting goals and moving to achieve goals is what helps everyone to develop and be happy. If there is no goal – there is no incentive to live, a person eats, sleep goes to work and life is unchanged. Nothing happens if something changes in the way of life, it’s luck, not human merit.
Proper setting of personal goals is a key stage of financial planning and its implementation. We achieve our goals solely through investment. However, the purpose of financial activities, investment – is the result to which the user wants to come, expressed in money or valuables.
Even when it comes to material values, there is a monetary equivalent. The goal can always be measured. Most often it is formed based on the following words – wealth, safe old age. There are no specifics or figures, so such goals often remain dreams.
The financial goals include what is measured in money. Alternatively, buy a new washing machine or the best credit repair but the amount to make this purchase. Of course, setting goals is not enough, you need to develop a plan that the user will follow. Here you need to immediately consider:
- how much money are you willing to save each month;
- for what period do you want to achieve the task.
When the deadline is longer, you need to think about how to increase the number of funds that are set aside. Example: buying a laptop, for $ 1,500, studying your budget, and willing to save $ 300 a month. It turns out that in 5 months it will be possible to accumulate, without taking into account the price increase. Then we think, if you save $ 500, and in 3 months you can achieve the goal.
Classification of goals:
- short-term up to 12 months;
- medium-term from 1 year to 3-5 years;
- long-term from 3 and above.
Short-Term Goals
December is considered the ideal month for financial planning. We use a diary, notebook, or document on the computer, to indicate all the costs that will be during the year from vacation to purchase a TV, and wardrobe upgrades. Note that it is necessary to enter the date of achievement when the task should be closed opposite the specified goal.
In this way, you can learn all the features of family budget planning, and understand what costs await you. Then you need to make more competent planning of funds and not deviate from the established plan.
When it comes to short-term goals, it is not recommended to use financial market instruments – stocks or bonds. The optimal solution:
- bank deposit;
- savings account.
It should be understood that financial markets are an unpredictable area that requires experience and knowledge, moreover, any fluctuations in volatility can disrupt plans.
Med-Term Goals
It is considered a more time-consuming and thorough stage, which is reduced to the accumulation of cars, real estate, training, or the creation of investment capital.
Long-Term Financial Goals
In this case, it is often a question of accumulating funds for retirement. As practice shows over time, the state only complicates the retirement process, so you have to provide for yourself in old age.
Advertising campaigns of banks, insurance companies and managers of these companies should not be conducted, as these tools are not designed for profitability. They are an incentive to save money on a specific purpose, thanks to which the user will make stable contributions. But in addition, the client insures himself against risks.
Imagine that the task is to raise a child to study at university. Work is associated with risks, as a result of using insurance, you can insure yourself and your savings. If you save steadily, you will be able to collect a good amount. Of course, inflation will eat money, but still the necessary capital for training will be raised.
What Are The Recommendations For Setting And Achieving Goals
It is human nature to spray, which is the basis for reducing the likelihood of achieving all goals. Therefore, in the process of creating a list of goals, you need to remember what is more important to you. Maybe solving priorities is a way to speed up the work process?
Next, remember, the longer the term, the fewer goals you need to write. Of course, the number of short-term tasks will be large, up to 10 points for sure, but long-term is reduced to 2. Yes, it depends on the situation, personal motivation, and budget. Therefore, it is important to properly distribute their own forces.
Medium and long-term are recommended to be divided into stages, this greatly simplifies the process. Imagine that in the first 12 months you need to save $ 20,000 for the medium term. Next year, the financial situation may improve and profitability will increase, respectively, you can increase the amount of savings. Possible changes for the worse, fired or sick, in this situation you need to adjust your own plans and goals, but do not give up tasks.
Even if the amount invested to achieve the goal is reduced, continue to save money. It is possible that the process will slow down, but still, it will be, and in some period it will be possible to reach the desired mark.
Features of Fixing Financial Goals
It seems simple, but in practice most make mistakes. Remember that you don’t need to keep goals in mind, you always need to write them down. Therefore, you can use any convenient option from a diary to Excel. There are special programs for phones that allow you to make personal plans for the year, week, or day.
Alternatively, programs for accounting or business planning. Here the range is wide, it remains only to choose the best option for you. Keep in mind that banks have the option to accumulate in mobile applications, which simplifies the use and the whole process in general. When fixing a task in your head – you lose motivation, which leads to failure to achieve the task.
