Personal Finance Challenge #22: Break Big Goals Into Smaller Goals

You have probably heard this one before. Break big overwhelming goals down into smaller easily achievable goals. What does this do for us?

It gives us a lot of satisfaction, it keeps us smiling, and most importantly, it keeps us on track to reach our bigger goal.

Here is what it looks like…

BIG GOAL: PAY OFF ALL MY DEBT

Intermediate goals:

1. Pay off my credit cards ($12,000)
2. Pay off my vehicle loan ($15,000)
3. Pay off my school loan ($5,000)
4. Pay off my mortgage ($160,000)

Game Plan:

Pay the above listed debts off in order by paying the minimums on everything besides the current one we are trying to pay off. In this case, we will start with the credit card debt.

Smaller Goals:

1. Earn $100-$200 more dollars a month by working some overtime hours (freelance work, side business, odd jobs, etc.)
2. Cut monthly costs by $100-$200 by saving on food and energy costs.
3. Apply the extra $200-$400 to paying off the credit card at an accelerated rate.
4. Start a small emergency fund to prevent taking on any future debt.
5. Smile and be happy because the plan is working.

With some creative thinking you can break your smaller goals into even smaller goals. For instance, the first goal of earning more money can be broken down into goals like, “Make 10 phone calls to prospective customers or clients to pick up some side work”.

The important thing here is to write all this down and keep it posted somewhere you will see it. When you focus on small goals that are easily achievable (who can’t make 10 phone calls?), the big goal won’t seem so daunting!

This is our 22th challenge in The Personal Finance Challenge Series…