Today Is Okay
It is hard to think about a long-range plan when today is okay.
But my purpose is to help you build a better mindset for money and get you to look beyond today to plan a better financial future for yourself.
Planning requires you to think about your present situation and consider what options you must reach your goals. Whether you set aside 5 minutes or 5 hours, taking the time to focus and research your options will save you a lot of time wasted on distractions and work on the goals of others. Some jobs are like that.
When I first started setting goals, it was difficult to think ahead longer than a week or a month. However, most of your worthwhile goals will require many steps, taking 1 to 5 years to complete. Now that is thinking long-range!
Next Month—Preparations
For you to plan long-range, you need to build a list of goals. They can be very simple, but they are central to planning.
Planning requires you to look at your goals and detail the steps that you are aware of to accomplish that goal. It can be as simple as saving $10 per week over 30 weeks to be able to spend $300 on an item you want.
You have a specific item on your list of goals, “Get this.” You note the cost, $300. You lay out the steps and timeline, save $10 per week over 30 weeks.
Each of your goals need any related costs and a timeline to accomplish. Then, each day you plan on what portion of your steps you can take to get you closer to your goals.
Next Year—Build
Our lives are seldom linear. That is, we are seldom able to do all that we plan on any given day. That can be frustrating when you felt so close to completing a step or reaching a goal.
You must allow for interruptions and distractions. Your timeline needs to be flexible. Always be thankful for your disappointments. Good will often come from them. They will help you see what is most important or help you see better options for your time.
The point I am trying to make is that you cannot control everything in your life. Though having good character and praying a lot for divine intervention will help. Being humble in your attitude will help you handle the changes in your daily activities.
Most importantly, as you consider the changes going on around you, your list of goals will tend to evolve. Reaching small goals will give you confidence to set larger goals. And, as you seek out inspiration from those who have reached similar goals or who offer motivation to work through problems, you will see other things to add to your list of goals, such as skills in communication and the ability to sell your ideas.
I suggest that you annually take at least 2 hours, in a quiet place, to review and update your list of goals. During that time, ask yourself, how am I doing? Can I make any changes to make my life better or to improve what I can do to make my financial condition better? These kinds of questions will help you see a better reason to make goals you had not considered and set aside goals that now seem less important.
Then, you are ready to start a new year!
Next 5 Years—Change Yourself
A lot can happen in 5 years. You could complete most career training programs, including college degrees. You could go from drowning in debt to being debt free. You could go from being shy to being outgoing. And the list goes on.
No matter what you see as being important to include in your future, those wishes will take time to become a reality. Plan on it.
If you are reading this blog during a difficult time in your life, I am hopeful that you can find some hope in these words. Faith is the evidence of things not seen. Your actions will affect your future. You can change!
If you plan for positive actions, then you will reap positive results. The key is in acting.
Jim Rhone defined action as work which becomes a miracle. He gave this example, “If we do 5 pushups and rest a little, we can do 5 more. But don’t rest too long. If we repeat that process, after a while we can do 15 pushups, then 25, etc. It’s a miracle!”
You must work on yourself to accomplish your goals. Your daily actions determine your timeline for accomplishment.
Yes, we can only do so much in 24 hours. But distractions and interruptions become easier to work around when we give our time value and purpose.
Help others when you can and plan to be helpful. But do not let others use you to help them be less responsible. Help others to make their own positive changes and make their lives better, too.
Be Sure to Look Beyond 5 Years
Hopefully, many who read this post are still young enough to make meaningful changes. You can gain a lot of good insight for making better decisions and better plans from those of us who have worked through disappointments and difficult situations over many years. Experiences have taught us a lot.
Make your own observations and evaluations of the experiences shared by others in conversation, in books, or on social media. Even some family members are worth listening to!
You have many years ahead of you. What will you do with that time? Will you say that your weekends are only for fun? Will you do just enough to get by? Will you learn to manage your time?
Or will you take some time to consider what you would like to do, to go, or become? Will you set some financial goals that can help you retire better off than your parents or grandparents?
You can become the designer of your life by building a list of goals that answer those previous questions about your use of time. Then, with that list of goals as a reference when making your daily, weekly, and yearly plans, you will have the incentive to act. Your daily work will have more purpose.
Goals will give you daily perspective. But life can lead you in new directions on occasion. Make sure that direction is good for you.
Others in your life, be they friends or family, have the capacity for good or ill will. You must make that evaluation.
However, working on yourself, your personality, your abilities, along with your ability to communicate, will help everything else go well. When you work on giving yourself time to prepare for achieving your goals, then, others will notice, both at work and at home.
You can build respect for yourself and for others who are trying, just like you.
The changes you make in yourself and for yourself will accumulate. Then, the changes you make will begin to reveal themselves in many ways, including your relationships and your mindset for money!