Ask the Readers: Goals and a Giveaway
As you know, I’m a huge advocate for establishing goals – realistic, achievable goals – and seeing them through to the end. Not only do I say what I’m going to do, but I actually do it. Regular readers, I’m sure this is no surprise to you. But if you’re new to SMFF, see this list of 2007 goals and their status to date, as well as my new goals for 2008.
When my brain is wired, I focus on an end result and don’t stop until I achieve it. Of course I’m flexible enough to adjust to life’s changes but for the most part, when I say I’m going to do something, you can consider it DONE. But enough about me. I’d like to know how my readers are doing and what new goals (short and long term) you plan to achieve in the future. So tell me…
What are your short & long term goals?
Are they realistic and achievable?
Do you have a plan to make them a reality?
Is the plan still in your head or has it been executed?
I want to hear from ALL of you, active commenters AND lurkers. Even if you post anonymously (use any name to identify yourself). You never know when you will inspire others to make a change for the better.
On Sunday, I’ll use a random number generator to select two winners who will receive an autographed copy of Goal Digger: Lesson Learned From The Rich Men I Dated, written by Alicia Dunams [see my book review].
Please, only ONE ENTRY PER PERSON.
The winners will be announced on Monday.
Now let’s talk about your new goals!
*passing the mic*
Edit to Add: I appreciate your emails, but in order to enter the book giveaway, you have to post your goals in the comments. K’thanks! :-)
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Work to achieve, not to acquire.
And as always, BE FABULOUS!
This blog is a personal account of my journey to become Healthy & Wealthy. If you like what you've read, feel free to subscribe via (feed reader) or (email) to follow along.
What are your short & long term goals?
Short term: save $100 by January 1st, fix my car, buy new coats and shoes for all 4 of my kids
Long term: save $100 a month towards purchasing a new car, start tithing to my church, work on educating my kids about money, and save $100 a month towards getting a better place to live
Are they realistic and achievable? yes
Do you have a plan to make them a reality? yes
Is the plan still in your head or has it been executed? Most of it is written down and has been executed. I’m still looking for things to use to work with my kids about money.
@ kat – How old are your children? If they’re young, may I suggest starting with a piggy bank that has 4 compartments (like some of these). One for spending, saving, investing, and tithing. When they are given money for rewards or birthdays, they can learn to divide their money into each compartment, and in doing so, you can explain the allocation and why each one is important.
In my experience, teaching children about money is more effective when it’s hands on and consistent.
What are your short & long term goals?
Short term: Finish paying off my old credit card debt by 12/31/07.
Start a “smell the roses” spending fund by 12/31/07.
Long term: Have $13,000 saved by 10/31/08 for the purpose of being in a home by winter 2008-9.
Increase income by at least $10K by June 2008.
Be debt free besides a mortgage by 2015.
Are they realistic and achievable?
Each one is realistic (except maybe that $13,000 – that’s pushing it, but I still think if I push myself it’s achievable). I actually expect to exceed these expectations because when I push myself, I usually exceed my expectations.
Do you have a plan to make them a reality?
Sure I do. Continuing on my current path of budgeting, debt-free spending, living on about half my income, and developing my career and contacts will get me there.
Is the plan still in your head or has it been executed?
I’m in the process right now. Execution takes place with every spending, budgeting, and career decision I make. I’m keeping track of my progress and making the tough decisions now.
What are your short & long term goals?
Short term to pay off my oustanding debt (not including student loans) by April 2008 (about 6K) Long Term to purchase my 1st home by Late 2008 (oct-dec) time frame.
Are they realistic and achievable? Yes they are very realistic and achievable. My debt that I have outside of my consumer loans are the balance on my surgery, cc debt and a loan (2500)I took out to pay for my mother’s dental work that wasn’t covered by her insurance.
Do you have a plan to make them a reality? yes.. with me starting a new position with a 14% increase in pay it will give me more expendable cash to pay off that debt as well as save additional funds
Is the plan still in your head or has it been executed? It’s being executed.. my ducks are in a row.. I’ve been aggressive at paying the debt now and with the increase it will happen sooner than later.
Short term – have $500 in savings by Jan. 1 and 1,000 by June 2008
Longer term-Pay off my cc by the time I’m done with school in 2010. Balance is 8,500 approx.
Be debt free by the time I’m 35, I’m 28 now- 46K in student loans.
Pay cash for a newly used, late-model car within 5 years. ( I pray my 96 Altima keeps rollin!)
Purchase a home by age 32.
Once I’m finished with school in 2010, I will have much more income to put towards debt. I don’thave a car payment now (obviously!)I pay 200 a month towards my cc debt and I plan to put my tax refund this year and next year toward cc debt. I put 126 a month in a savings account. My stipend from school is only 20K minus taxes but I live in a small town so things are cheaper and the temptation is not what it would be in a city.
ALL of us? What is this, homework? Waaah.
Short and long term goals? Here are some from short-range to long-range:
1) Pay outstanding bills before leaving on vacation.
2) Choose my charities for the year and make donations.
3) Rollover my old employer’s pension fund into an IRA, then roll that over into a Roth IRA.
4) Retire at age 52, whether my current pension rules change or not.
Realistic and achievable? Most are. #4 above has a component in it where if my pension completely falls apart, I would probably have to reduce my standard of living a fair amount to retire, but that’s okay.
Do you have a plan to make them a reality? I’m pretty sure I can make all the above a reality (see below). My plan to get a more fun job, though, well, it depends on a lot of other people. I’m still looking for additional strategies for that one.
Is the plan still in your head or has it been executed?
1) Pay bills – I’m paying them as I receive them.
2) Charities – I have the money, and it’s in the right account. I have one last resource to browse for ideas, then I may consult with my friends. I will be using justgive.org because they let you be anonymous (no junk mail).
3) Rollovers – I know which company I want to roll the funds into and I have one of the forms but need to get off my butt and make some more calls.
4) Retire – My pension, if unchanged and if I keep working in a place with that pension (for 7 years and 2 months, not that I’m counting, yes I am) would cover about 60% of my current income. But the rules can change (and have changed) at any time. So I’m also maxing out my Roth IRA and will max it out at the new level next year, and every year (if the level doesn’t increase too fast!), which will cover about 20% of my income by then. My mortgage will be paid off in 6 years and all other debts are paid. I also contribute some to my Roth 403b and will increase that with each raise (so far, still negligible). I will continue reviewing investment options. I will continue learning frugality strategies. And I will continue the hunt for better jobs. I also would like to look into other income streams, but haven’t done much in that area yet.
P.S. Oops, these goals aren’t particularly new. The first ones are, but they are part of the old goals of paying bills on time and contributing annually. A new goals is to switch to an online savings account with a better interest rate.
Short-term goals:
1) Maintain status quo: Maintain $15K emergency fund, by making enough part-time (usually >$1600/mo) that I do not have to dip into my savings during school. Add to EF if possible. Keep contributing at least $100/mo to Roth. So far, so good, since August 07.
2) Get 10% increase in salary next January ‘08, boosting my hourly rate while in school to ~$24/hr after taxes.
3) After school is out May 08, go back to full-time and pay mom back the $5000 I borrowed while in school, after/while replacing that $5K with my own money.
4) Pass my licensing exam in October, getting a 10-15K raise next Jan. 09.
Long-term:
1) by 2009: fully fund Roth every year.
2) Increase 401K savings to max after 10-15K raise.
3) Start saving for a house–I want it to be a 20% downpayment, so I just need to figure out where I’m going to live and what the average house costs in that area.
4) Once EF, car EF, house savings, Roth, and 401K are maxed out, figure out bare minimum salary necessary to meet/maintain these financial goals. Then, change jobs to both meet financial goals AND personal satisfaction career goals. For now, I’m using my current job to get to that point…
I think they are VERY realistic and achievable; I’ve been working toward this point for several years. I always know what my next step is to reach my next goal. My goals build one on top of another–they ARE my plan–but I use excel spreadsheets, expense tracking, my blog, and other tools to make them an everyday reality.
My first short-term goal is a reality so far. I have met/exceeded this goal so far for the fall 07 semester–with 4 weeks to go, I think I will make it. I’m taking one thing at a time, all the while knowing that I have ALOT more work to do after this goal is finished.
Of course, the long-term goals and some of the short-term goals are moot if my boyfriend and I move to New Zealand next summer…my plans will have to be altered a bit to accomodate an international move!
ok…well…since you asked, here are my financial goals and plan for 2008:
Short and Long Term Goals:
Short: increase my personal “stash” savings account by $3K by YE 2008.
Increase contribution to my personal “S**t Happens” savings account by $600/month.
Increase contribution to the family investment fund by $275/month.
Expose our son to charitable giving in a way that is meaningful to him.
Long Term:
Pay off family Home Equity Loan (our master bathroom is worth every penny(LOL) in 4 years (the loan has a 5-year term).
Increase my personal 401(k) balance by $200,000 in 3 years.
Add to and diversify the family investment funds into other asset classes.
Are they realistic and achievable: the only one that is a “depends” is the 401(k). Based on my contribution level, current balance, etc. I should be able to make it, but a prolonged market downturn could adversely impact the goal. The rest are achievable.
Do you have a plan? Yes, ma’am.
Is the plan in my head or executed? Everything but the diversification has been executed.
The additional monthly contributions have already been set up for 2008, as has the payment plan for the HEL.
I adjusted my asset allocation in the 401(K) to what I think will achieve the goal.
I am a big believer in making it automatic.
When the “stash” and “Sh**t Happens” money go over predetermined thresh holds, the excess will be used to diversify the non-retirement family investments. This should happen in late 2008, early 2009.
With our son: We have lined up a couple of charities that he can fund with part of his holiday and birthday money. We are leaning towards Kiva.
Thanks for asking. I really enjoyed the exercise. I knew my goals, but had honestly not written them down in the way you laid out.
PS: Some of the goals above are personal goals and some are family goals, meaning my DH and I have agreed on them. Anything labeled personal is just me.
What are your short & long term goals?
Short term: Have my personal finance book published.
Long term: Teach personal finances to 100,000 people by October 2011
Are they realistic and achievable? ABSOLUTELY YES
Do you have a plan to make them a reality? ABSOLUTELY
Is the plan still in your head or has it been executed? It is written down. In fact the book is headed to the publisher tomorrow!!! It has taken TWO YEARS to get it to this point.
People CAN win with money! I see it happen every single day!
What are your short goals?
My short term goals would be paying off my cc’s debt, around 5700, as soon as possible
I do have another card with 6900 on it but I have a fixed 1.75% rate for 4 more years at $160 per month so I will not speed up pymt. on this card due to the rate
Long term goals?
Saving money to hopefully have 20% saved for a house in my early 30’s. I am 26 now. Also I would like to pay off the 42k of student loan debt in 10 yrs.
Are they realistic and achievable?
The house may not be, I live in a wonderful area with low-end houses being 130-150k. The property taxes run around 3500-4000+ per year around here. I chose this area because the public schools are fantastic! I would like to buy a house here so my daughter can continue going to these schools.
Do you have a plan to make them a reality?
Well, I recently quit smoking so I am putting the 200 a month i’m saving (pack a day + 30 a month health ins. premium) into my ING account.
I’ve also cut down on spending big time…
Is the plan still in your head or has it been executed?
I am executing it all the time. I have been finding ways to save (i currently take the train to work instead of driving and paying to park) I also have been making grocery store list.It seems pretty easy to do right now since I just started my new job in May. Before this while I was going to school I was barely making it paycheck to paycheck.
short term goal: reach $100,000 income annually
long term goal: have a child and retire early
Are they achievable? If I keep on working hard and save regularly it should be achievable. The child part would be up to my husband. If he doesn’t want a kid I might not have one. Though it seems like he just wants to have a child later.
Do you have a plan to make this a reality? Sort of. It’s not very fleshed out, but I think I am on the right track and I’m blogging along the way.
My short term goals are to create an E-Fund of $1000 and to pay off $1000 in credit card debt. I will accomplish this goal by Feb 1st.
My long term goal is to save enough money so that I can to nursing school full time (which means quitting my job).
Both goals are realistic and achievable. To make them a reality I must pay off my car loan of $7000and the remainder of my debt which is $22,000.
I have four years to make this happen. The plan has moved from my head to my husbands ears to a workbook I’ve created to help me along.
Short term goal is to have $17,000in savings by graduation in May.
My long term goal is to figure out what my long term goals should be.
My short term goal is challenging, but I have a plan. It will be much easier if I get a research grant for next semester, but I think it is achievable either way.
I’m executing my plan by continuing to live on less than I bring in and enjoying the magic of compound interest.
The long term goal is the tricky one…