Defining Your Financial Goals

Have you had trouble getting your money to work for you? All the financial advisors tell you that money has to work for you to grow, but no matter what you do, you just can’t get it to work. 

The following are some simple suggestions to help you gain an understanding of your money, what it needs to do and how to take the first steps to make it work for you. This article is not a step-by-step guide for saving or investing, it is a simple guideline to get you in the right mind-set with your money. 

What Money Can and Can’t Do.
Money can pay for an education, pay for nice cars, homes, fund vacations, and sporting events. Money cannot buy love, friendship, peace, happiness or knowledge. It can fund the education but cannot buy the knowledge and plant it into your mind. Money cannot buy your values or self-esteem. But money is directly related to your values and your self-esteem. It has been said that, “the love of money is the root of all evil.” This is simply not true. It’s the greed that leads to evil-doing of men. You can love and respect money without being greedy. You can have the mind-set of drawing money to you without being greedy. You have to understand money to make it work. Money is a living entity that needs attention just as much as a child does. 

You need to be clear about what you want out of your money and be as specific as possible. 

Things to consider are: 

What’s important to you? Giving your children a good education? Having a nice home and car? Paying the bills on time and having money left over? 

What makes you happy? Giving your family nice things? Taking a nice vacation every year? Security? 

How much money do you want to have? Do you want to retire with an abundance of money? Do you want a lot of investments?
How do you want to spend that money? Cars, boats, summer beach house? Dining in fine restaurants? Home electronics?
What do you want to contribute with your money? Do you want to give to charity?