Goals can be huge motivators in helping us get what we want. My goals tend to be really huge and often leave me doing nothing in the wake of the overwhelm. It’s good to have a big end vision in mind of where you’d like to be. Sometimes that clear end goal gets me moving. Some goals are so huge and far from where I am that I need to ignore the big goal to keep from freaking myself out. I find that the smaller, one thing to a time, kind of approach is much more helpful in actually getting to the big goal a lot of times.
If you have a goal of being debt free, or saving a down payment for a home, or any other big goal I’d like to suggest ignoring it a little and choosing a tiny goal (that is on the way to the big goal) instead. If you are currently over-spending each month and accumulating more debt, being debt free is a long way from there. Thinking about all the changes required to get to that outcome can be incredibly disheartening. Looking at where you are and the end goal can be a little counter-productive in terms of motivating you to where you want to be. Your goal might need to be to just reduce your overspend. Then the next goal might be a net zero each month. Then some extra to debt, then more to debt each month, then to a sustainable amount that will see you to debt free.
The big goal doesn’t go away for making a new smaller goal. The big goal is actually much more attainable by ignoring it for a while and focusing on a smaller goal. Trying to cut $100 from your regular spending a month is a whole lot more attainable than trying to go from overspending by $500 a month to throwing $1000 towards debt.
This is where the habits come in. You might pick a line on your budget like food and work on some habit changes around how you spend on that. Take your goal of cutting $100 a month and turn it into one habit change that will bring about the end result and put your focus there. There are lots of ways that you can cut costs in that area. Narrowing it down to one area that you are working on gives you a focus and clarity that will actually help you make sustainable changes in habit that can last long term and that you can build on. Give yourself some time to adjust to that new behavior so that it actually becomes your new normal.
If your goal can really be narrowed down to one habit change at a time you will have much more success than trying to change everything at once. Habits take work to change. If you are trying to cut out takeout, stop buying impulsively, cutting entertainment costs, etc. all at once you aren’t going to be able to effectively accomplish either long term. In my experience it just breeds more of a ‘I can’t do it’ kinda attitude that gets you further behind than when you started.
So be easy on yourself. Have the big goal. Don’t think that you have to do it all at once though. Pick one small goal, turn it into a specific habit and work away at that. Let go the all-or-nothing type approach to working on your finance. Progress is progress. Small changes that are sustainable and habitual are way better than harsh changes that you quit again in a few weeks because they were unrealistic and completely opposite to your current normal or because you were trying to change too many things at once.
We are playing the long game here. It’s like trying to lose ten pounds for a wedding next month vs making small incremental improvements in eating and exercising habits for your long term health. You might be able to make the drastic changes short term to reach your goal for the wedding, but the level of will-power and motivation required for that is simply not sustainable long term. We want long term financial health, not short term austerity to reach some big goal right away. Adjust your expectations to make it more sustainable.
Most importantly is to celebrate all the successes! Don’t think for a minute that the small goals are insignificant in any way and not worthy of celebrating. There is nothing insignificant about taking consistent aligned action towards what you want. It’s also completely ok to not make the big goal your focus if it isn’t helping. Work on the habits that will bring you there and it accomplishes the same thing anyway.
Lots of love
Dawn
Tax Wise 