It’s a new quarter of the year and like you know many individuals started off the year with new financial goals, but sticking to these financial goals can be challenging. Some individuals are still on the right track towards attaining their financial goals while some have fallen off the track. If you have already fallen behind on some of your financial goals, that’s is not the end of the world, just know FundBae have you in mind and you are not alone in this. For those looking to get back on track with their financial goals, here are a few suggestions.
Evaluate your Current Status
First, you need to take a minute to evaluate where you’re at. Where did you start, and where you’re going? Sit down, think critically about your current situation and truly give an unbiased opinion of where you’re at with your financial goals. In the heat of the moment (whether good or bad), you’re not likely to give yourself an accurate depiction. Instead, take some time to evaluate when you’re calmer.
Pay attention to where your money is going
Money is slow to enter but fast to go in terms of spending. Be sure of where your funds go to at intervals and if you are not sure, then that could be the first problem you need to address. It is advisable to always have a budget that helps you stop spending money on things that aren’t important to you so that you still have money left to spend on the things that ARE important to you. A tool like FundBae can help you to track where your money is going.
Adjust your budget and set new goals
After you have a good idea of where your money is going, it’s time to evaluate your existing goals. If you feel like you’re a bit off track of the financial goals you set earlier, there’s no better time than today to adjust things and get into a more realistic place. Don not be hard on yourself, rather use the time to set yourself back into a better place.
Setting new goals will help you figure out few things that you thought would be good that haven’t worked out and also identified few things that are working great.
The “Stop, Start, Continue” pattern helps you to figure how to adjust and set new goals:
- Stop doing that you are currently doing
- Start doing that you aren’t doing
- Continue doing what is working
Stay Accountable
After setting and adjusting your goals, one major step in getting back on track is to set up some accountability. Try and be accountable to an individual concerning your finances. If you are in a healthy relationship, it’s a great idea to talk about your money with your spouse or partner. For those on the same page financially speaking, the two of you can help support each other.
If you’re single, an option can be to find an accountability partner. Try and find a trusted friend or family member who is also looking for some accountability, that can be a great way to help both of you. If not, the most important thing is to write down your goals, financial or otherwise. Goals are much more difficult to accomplish if you try to keep them in your head.
Keep Pushing
Just as earlier stated, habits do not just come into perfection just like that. It is okay to make mistakes. Too many people make one mistake and then blow up the whole plan. If you’ve struggled with money your whole life, it’s not realistic to expect to change your habits overnight, or even over the course of weeks or months. If you go over your budget in a particular month, look at the bigger picture and celebrate your successes. That just might give you the energy and excitement to keep moving forward into even bigger successes.
