One of the challenges I faced when I decided to start this blog was asking myself: What am I trying to accomplish?
Having defined goals makes it easier to accomplish things, because you know exactly what you’re working toward. I started to answer that question when I talked about why I’m doing this, but I think I need to dig into my answer a little deeper. I came across a helpful post on Moolanomy about setting goals, and I thought there were some great guidelines for defining goals:
Setting a SMART goal is the key to success:
- Specific – knowing exactly what you want
- Measurable – having the ability to track progress
- Actionable – knowing the steps needed to achieve the goal
- Realistic – being in the realm of possibility
- Timely – knowing when the goal will be achieved
Using those guidelines, I’ve decided to clearly define my goal by turning it into a SMART goal:
- Specific – Pay off $20,000 in student loans
- Measurable – I can track my loan balance in Quicken
- Actionable – Earn and save money, live frugally
- Realistic – I plan on having a full time job, so it’ll definitely be possible
- Timely – Pay off the loans by June 2010
What’s your goal?
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That’s a good start. I think you want to dig a little deeper and create a wall chart similar to the one I have.
You essentially give yourself 30 months to pay off $20,000 loan. So you have to pay off at least $670 per month. Is that “realistic”? If not, you may have to revise your time line — i.e., give yourself 5 years and pay $340 a month.
This is all before interest, so you will have to take that into account as well.
Thanks for the tip. That’ll definitely help out.
Thanks for your post.
I just wrote a blog, “How Resolutions Will Save AND MAKE You Money,” that features related money making ideas. It’s a great idea and I hope people take advantage!
Best of luck in the new year!
Shauna
http://shauna26.wordpress.com/