Articles | New Year Resolutions And Smart Goals

 

 

 

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New Year Resolutions And Smart Goals

By Fran Hughes is a Certified Financial Planner and Head of Financial Solutions at Nexia Perth www.nexia.com.au

 

 

 

The start of a new calendar brings renewed focus to the year ahead, and an ideal time for new year resolutions. With the year we had in 2020, the feeling is that most are writing-off the year that was, and setting new goals for the year ahead, 2021.

Research shows that 35 percent of resolutions made at the start of a new year fail because it is unrealistic, whilst 33 percent didn’t not keep track of their progress or let it slide as it wasn’t important enough.

Here are 3 tips to achieving your financial goals.

Be specific

Knowing how to establish great goals is key to achieving success. Goals take on a life of its own when it is specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound, otherwise know as S.M.A.R.T. goals. A goal without these components, is just a wish.

Think of a new year’s resolution such as ‘I want to lose weight’. If there’s no goal set around the amount of weight to lose or by when, chances are, this wish will fall by the way-side.

So too are financial goals. A goal of ‘saving more money’ holds less weight than a goal of ‘save $500 per fortnight over the next 12 months for a holiday to Europe in 2022’. Goals need not be complicated, however make it memorable and you’ll discover a higher rate of success.

Limit the number of goals

Having too many goals can overwhelm and frustrate progress. Limiting the number of goals allows you to be laser focused and motivated to achieving them.

Consider the following 3 goals: ‘I will save $500 from my fortnightly pay over the next 12 months for my trip to Europe’, ‘I want to pay an extra $1,000 per month to pay down my home loan over the next 10 years’, and ‘I plan to salary sacrifice $250 per fortnight into my superannuation to save for my retirement’.

Three goals with a timeline of short-term, mid-term and long-term, keeps you motivated to achieve one after another. 

Make the goal inspiring

I had a client whose goal was to own a million-dollar home with no debts. When asked why, he said when growing up he envisioned being a ‘millionaire’. To him, this is his inspiration to being financially independent.  

What is your inspiration? If there were no limits, what would financial freedom look like to you? Set financial goals that are inspiring, and chances are, it will keep you motivated to finding a way to achieving them.

Working alongside a financial planner may just be the motivation you need to keep you on track to hitting those financial targets!

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