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Financial Resolutions to Make in 2021
Financial Resolutions to Make in 2021
FEBRUARY 22, 2021
To say 2020 was a challenging year would be an understatement. Tough on our mental and physical wellbeing, and even tougher on (many of) our wallets.
It’s okay if you didn’t get to achieve the financial goals you set out to last year. If you’re like pretty much everyone else, your priorities had to shift quickly to make sure you could weather the storm that was 2020. Thankfully, we’re finally free to toss out last year’s calendar, try to forget it ever happened, and begin anew.
Let’s start 2021 with a fresh set of financial resolutions. Ones that are meaningful, achievable, and meant to improve your financial fitness. We have a few suggestions of our own for you to consider, but before that, let’s make sure you’ve got your goal-setting strategy down pat.
Let’s set some SMART goals
It’s a new year – why not try a new goal-setting strategy? If you’ve never heard of SMART goals, your goal-setting ability is about to get a much-needed upgrade.
SMART is an acronym that stands for:
Specific – Not ambiguous, clearly defined
Measurable – Includes criteria that measure your progress
Achievable – Attainable, goal is within reach
Relevant – The goal matters to you and is personally meaningful
Timely – Includes a start date and finish date
If you’re going to set goals, make sure they’re SMART – you’re much more likely to accomplish them over more general ones. Take a look at the examples below, and you’ll see why.
- A general goal is “I want to save more money this year.”
- A SMART goal is “I want to save $3,000 dollars this year to build up my emergency fund. I can accomplish that by setting aside $250 dollars from my income each month, or $125 dollars from each paycheck. By June, I’ll be halfway towards my goal.”
As New York Times bestselling author Mark Manson puts it, “Specific (or SMART) goals act as a sort of GPS for your life. And just like the GPS on your phone needs a specific destination to be useful, our goals really only work when you have a specific outcome in mind.”
So – if you’d like to make sure the goals you’ve set get accomplished this year, make sure they’re SMART. It’ll make a world of difference.
One more goal setting tip
Let’s say you have an ambitious goal in mind – one you really have to reach for. Our advice? Do yourself a favor and break it into smaller, more manageable chunks.
If your goal is overly ambitious, there’s a good chance you’re going to lose motivation along the way because making meaningful progress will feel like it takes forever. If your goal isn’t ambitious enough, you’ll accomplish it quickly, but it won’t end up feeling that meaningful in the long term. As with everything else in life, there’s always a perfect balance.
Brendan
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