The Only Goals I Like Seeing Are the Ones Hitting the Back of the Net.

I have been approached on many occasions to help people with their various savings plans.  Well, their lack of plans. 

See, many people who have gotten into this recent savings kick (which has become "sexy" again... only took another recession...) do so with the only motivation being that it should be done because someday we may lose it all.

"I might lose my job."
"How will I make payments on (insert random hoodad)?"
"I have bills to pay."
"I want to be secure."

Let's think about this for a minute.  Is just safety, security, peace of mind, etc. enough to keep you saving?  For some (and we're talking .001% of the population), yes.  For the bulk of us, heck no.

So how do we counter this?  We set future accomplishments.  How refreshing you say to yourself.  "I thought you were going to say goals... gross."

Goals have been getting a bad rap lately.  Businesses have been implementing the SMART Goal method.  It looks good on paper if you are a "goal-oriented person."  I'm sick of it too.

The reason why most goals fail is that they are things we try to accomplish.  The word "try" should be excommunicated.  People either "do" or "don't."

So set accomplishments.  I know it's a silly psychological tactic, but you will succeed if you use it.  Making it an accomplishment gives it concrete meaning.  It involves a full out commitment to achieve.  How do we set accomplishments?

• Step 1:  Determine what you truly desire out of life and make it a top priority (the hardest part in my opinion).
• Step 2:  Do the actionable steps to knock that priority out.
• Step 3:  Evaluate, then repeat the process as necessary.

Example:
A buddy of mine wants to save up for a house.  Here is what he needs to do.

• Step 1:   If a house is something he truly desires, he needs to define exactly what a house is.  Is it just a roof over your head?  Is it a place to keep your stuff?  How big is this house?  Where is this house?  How much is this house? etc. Be as detailed as possible to make it feel more tangible.
• Step 2:  If he truly completed Step 1, than he would be able to do the research to find that all encompassing house that he wants, finding a price point to achieve with savings, and open up some type of savings vehicle to get him to where he needs to be (I would suggest the pay yourself first method a.k.a. automated savings deposits).
• Step 3:  If this truly is what he desires, and he has made it a top priority, then nothing will stop him.  If it isn't, then something will.  With the latter, back to the drawing board.

It's simple, but not easy.  What stops most people from accomplishing what they truly desire is the fact that they don't know what they truly desire in the first place.  Maybe I'll touch on that in another post.