Christmas and New Years are a wonderful time full of family, food, and resolutions. There is just something about a new year (and two solid weeks of eating our weight in Christmas goodies) that inspires us to improve and set goals for the future.
The end of the year is a great time to look back and see how your financial life changed during the last 12 months. Has your credit improved? Did you make progress toward saving for that down payment? Did you max out your 401(k)? If you had specific financial goals for the year, did you reach them? Be honest with yourself. You have to have a clear understanding of where you are at to come up with a game plan of where to go from here.
Now looking forward, what do you want this coming year? I am not just talking about making goals for how much money you want to make (although that may be a part of it). One of the biggest mistakes I see is that people start with the numbers and not with what they actually want. Money is worth next to nothing in and of itself.
Don’t start with the numbers. Start with things that numbers will allow you to do. For example, do you want to spend less time in the office and more time with the family? Do you want to finally take the trip to Europe that you have been dreaming of? Do you want a job that fulfills you? Do you want to buy a new house? Do you want to finally be debt free? Do you want to expand your business? Do you want to make sure you are on the right track for retirement? Do you want to pay for your children’s college?
Now, it is incredibly important to rank your goals by level of importance. Sometimes there isn’t enough resources to fund the new house, boat, and still stay on track for retirement. I am a huge advocate of big goals but we can’t forget that big goals require a big work ethic to back them up. Be clear about your priorities so you don’t get stretched too thin by things that aren’t as important to you.
Once you know what you actually want, you can start building a plan to get there. What are the next steps to bring you closer to your goals? Break it down into pieces that you can actually accomplish this month, this week, or even better, today. Do you need to improve your credit score? Take a course? Learn a new skill? Higher a new employee? Is there someone you know that has done what you are trying to do? Can you ask them how they did it?
Goals are absolutely worthless without action. Even if you don’t know every step towards your goal, just get started with what you do know. The entire path is rarely clear from the beginning. As you take the first steps, the next few become clear. One day, you’ll look up and you’ve reached your goal, just a couple steps at a time.
The good (and sometimes scary) news is that it is completely your choice on what you will find in 2020. No matter how 2019 went for you, you have the incredible opportunity to start a new year with a new outlook. Decide to make 2020 amazing today.