Goooaaaals!!!

With the FIFA World Cup Soccer finals today, we thought it would be timely to talk about why goals are important. It’s kind of obvious in soccer since the team who scores the most goals wins. But scoring and winning games don’t just happen. It requires the coaches and players to set a different kind of goals at the beginning of each season and ongoing planning, preparing, working, and sacrificing for months or even years to achieve those goals. Over the course of the season, the team will assess how they are progressing on their goals and make necessary adjustments to get back on track. Sound familiar?

These same principles apply to setting and achieving financial goals. Every day we have to make choices about the things competing for our time and money. Without a plan in place it’s easy for both to quickly disappear without much to show for it. Knowing where your money is going and setting financial goals that support your life goals is the first step to getting better prepared for the future. You can start by simply making a list of what you want to achieve and by when. Then prioritize them by importance. Be specific, because the more detailed you are when setting your goals the more likely you are to be successful. Try SMART goals; they help you break each goal down into a Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound statement. You can read more about this in our “SMART Goals” article. Once you set your goals, put an action plan in place, commit to it, and monitor your progress.

Everyone needs goals. Soccer teams, businesses and individuals all need to be specific about where they want to end up so they can build a roadmap and get going. Need help turning your life goals into financial goals or staying on track? BrightDime has the tools for setting and tracking your goals. Let’s get started (as soon as the game is over).