How to set financial goals and types of financial goals

The financial goals will serve as incentives to make good use of your personal finances. These will give you purpose and drive you to achieve your personal and professional goals, through good money management. Are you ready to create financial goals to help you achieve success? You Can check credit reports with Smart Credit to achieve your goals.

In today’s article, you will study how to set financial goals. Then we will introduce you to the types of financial goals that exist.

Shall we start?

Table of Contents

How to set financial goals?

Financial goals will help you determine where you want to go and how to achieve them. A company specialized in investments, proposes four steps to establish effective financial goals this 2021.

1. What do you desire to do with your money?

Everyone has different goals and they plan to do different things with their money. While some have goals because they want to buy a house or car, others are dedicated to creating a college fund for their children.

It may vary depending on the stage of life you are in, as this will determine what your priorities are and your life plan related to your personal finances.

Although everyone wants to grow their money, they must ask themselves how much? How fast? And for what? In this way, they will be able to define their financial goals and how to achieve them.
Other questions that you can ask yourself to understand how to define financial goals are: what life do you want today? and what life do you want in the future?

The SMART method is great for setting goals. This consists of setting objectives taking into account the following factors:

Specific. It allows you to narrow down your goals to make it easier for you to create a plan to achieve them. Avoid very general goals and state concrete facts.

Measurable. How do you know if you are on the right track if you cannot measure the progress and the result of your goals? Especially in relation to finances, you must be able to evaluate if what you are doing is working or you must make changes in the plan to achieve your financial goals.

Achievable. When we talk about achievable goals, we mean that they are realistic. Everyone wants to be a millionaire in no time, but is it possible? If you want to know how to set goals, you need to consider what your capabilities and resources are, as well as what methods are available to you.

Relevant. Is it important to achieve this financial goal? As we mentioned previously, they all have different goals. Consider what effect meeting this financial goal will have on your life plans.

Time. Setting a time limit to meet your goals is very important, as it will help you organize your action plan and monitor your progress. People tend to be unmotivated when they do not know what to expect and do not have clear goals. An effective financial method reduces financial uncertainty by clarifying and indicating what you should accomplish. If you know and understand your financial goals, you are more likely to achieve them. An essential benefit of having a financial plan is that it helps you remain focused, even when you have reached the goals you set for yourself. In addition, it will serve as motivation. However, do not forget that the deadline must be realistic. For example, it is impossible to save a million dollars in 3 months, if you have a part-time job.

2. Rank your financial goals

Once you have written what your 2021 financial goals are, it is very important to organize them. In this case, we suggest you sort your goals into three categories: short, medium, and long-term goals.

Short-term financial goals. Short-term goals are those closest to the present; that is, those that you can apply immediately.

Medium-term financial goals. Medium-term goals are what you want to achieve in the near future. These are usually divided into tasks and require a long-term commitment.

Long-term financial goals. When we speak of long-term goals, we refer to objectives to be met in the next five to ten years. Likewise, these depend on short-term and medium-term goals; that is, they need to be aligned.

3. Set a date for each financial goal

Although we have already addressed this point previously, we want to emphasize the importance of establishing deadlines for the achievement of financial goals. This will allow you to create a detailed step-by-step plan that, in turn, will help you manage time and be more productive.

Also, having a specific deadline to reach your financial goals will create a feeling of commitment and prepare you for the pace of work. Also, the dates represent a challenge, then they will incentivize you to demonstrate your capabilities and your efficiency to meet the challenge. Finally, meeting the deadlines for your goals will bring you satisfaction, as well as give you the motivation to achieve the following.

4. Prioritize the most important financial goals

Now that you know what financial goals to set for yourself in 2021, which one to start with? Prioritize your goals to identify where to put your money first. Once they are ordered by temporality, you can now organize them according to their relevance.

Of your short-term goals, which ones are most important? You can divide your goals into three categories: essential, necessary, and desired. If we talk about essential goals, they are those that you cannot fail to meet; the necessary goals are those that represent something that you would benefit from incorporating into your life; And, finally, the desired goals are the objectives that you would like to achieve, but are not essential for your life.

Types of financial goals

Financial goals involve different strategies to meet them, which can vary due to different factors, including time. Next, we will present you with how to achieve your goals according to the timeframe you set for yourself.

Short-term financial goals

These goals are things that you can accomplish in days, weeks, or a few months. Also, short-term goals are those that will allow you to easily access your funds when you need them within the next year, such as savings accounts.

Short-term financial goals will help you plan your personal budget, break bad financial habits, get out of debt, and save. In addition, they will teach you how to invest to have better profits in less time.

On the other hand, make sure that all your goals are aligned with each other; In this way, achieving your short-term goals will contribute to the achievement of medium and long-term goals. Also, meeting your short-term financial goals will bring you satisfaction and incentivize you to achieve your next goals.

Medium-term financial goals

These types of financial goals are those that can take between a few months to 5 years to complete and require a sustained effort over time. Medium-term goals represent achievements that are divided into tasks and that will be achieved after a process that involves steps.

To meet your it in the medium term, it is important to develop an action plan, as well as use additional tools that allow you to track progress and evaluate whether the strategy you are applying is working or not to determine if the plan requires changes.

Likewise, to meet their medium-term goals, in many cases, people choose to put their money on a fixed term for a specific period and thus generate profitability to meet their objectives.

Some examples of medium-term goals are saving to buy a new car, to go on a very special vacation, or to fund your children’s college education. Other medium-term may be to develop multiple sources of income or start a business.

Long-term financial goals

Long-term goals are those that you seek to meet in a period of time greater than 5 years. Unlike short-term and medium-term goals, these do not bring you instant or small rewards, but rather long-term benefits.

Strategies to meet long-term often involve an investment with a better return, but with greater risks. However, financial intelligence involves finding a balance between risk and potential benefits before making any decisions.

For example, when we talk about long-term financial goals, we usually mean retirement investment accounts, paying a home mortgage, buying a home, and purchasing a life insurance policy.