The start of the new year usually signifies the start of many things. What better time to begin making the right financial decisions than the start of a hopeful year like 2023?

Many of us have been trying hard to make the right decisions with our money but just can’t seem to get ahead. We’ve been working tirelessly for the past years, but due to a lot of factors, at the end of each year, we still haven’t accomplished much.  This year, to finally start making progress, it is very important to set financial goals.

TIP 1: BE REALISTIC

We all know how to set a financial goal. Many would say “I would like to save XX amount this year.” But at the end of the day, is your goal realistic enough? Can you really save that amount of money considering all your NECESSARY expenses? A lot of us have failed in this aspect. We have set goals that are too high, that midway through the year, when we notice that we are not attaining what we thought we would, we lose the motivation to keep pursuing the goal.

TIP 3: BE SPECIFIC

The key to setting any financial goal is to know exactly what you want to achieve and when you want to accomplish it. What is it that you want to achieve? How long will it take? What are the steps to achieving it? It is best to break them down into simple actionable steps so that it is easier to follow. Setting vague goals like “I want to do better with money” will not get you anywhere. However, if you say “I want to pay-off my credit card debts by the end of the year. I will set aside P3,000 per payday for this goal”, it will be easier to accomplish.

TIP 2: BE CONSISTENT

When setting any goal, whether financial or personal, it is imperative that we commit to it every step of the way. Some of us would be very eager during the start of the goal but lose momentum midway. In order to ensure that we achieve our goal, we need to keep at it from beginning to end.

While every person’s financial situation is different, but regardless of your situation, a plan both short and long term is very important in order to achieve whatever goals you have set for yourself.