What's your goal for 2010?

Do you have a financial goal and plan for this year? Do you have any goals for your finances in 2010?

It’s important to have a goal and a plan on how to achieve it. If you don’t have a goal, it’s like a ship not having a destination. And if you do have a goal, but no plan on how to achieve it, that is like a ship that doesn’t have a crew. Either way, you end up going wherever the current and wind take you, and you have very little control over where you end up.


The goal is vital because it is where you want to be; the destination. The plan describes how you are going to get there. While your goal should remain pretty much the same until you achieve it, your plan may need to be updated to reflect the circumstances you find yourself in as you travel towards your goal. By regularly reviewing your plan, you can determine if your plan’s activities is actually taking you towards your goal they way you want. Remember, even if you have a destination in mind and a crew on your ship, when you leave to cross the ocean you can be just 2 degrees off the course and end up a long way from where you intended to go. Minor corrections in course are needed along the way.

Those are the major 3 steps of accomplishing goals:
1. Set the goal.
2. Create a plan to accomplish the goal, and follow it.
3. Review your plan to see if it is taking you where you want to go, make adjustments to the plan as needed.

This applies for all sorts of goals: weight loss, mountain climbing, building a house…
As this is a Credit Union article, we will concentrate on financial goals.

There are many financial goals that you could have for 2010. Some examples that might help you are:
  -Eliminate all credit card debt and leave the cards at home, and away from the internet.
  -Make 2 extra payments on the mortgage.
  -Maximize your RRSP contribution.
  -Maximize your Tax Free Savings Account (TFSA) contribution.
  -Earn additional income of $500/month beyond your salary.
  -Invest so that you make at least $500 in dividends this year.
  -Get a will, or update your will.

Whatever and however many you choose, they should play a major part of your long term goals as well, which are at least 5 to 10 years out. Usually a combination of paying down high interest debt and establishing a basic savings emergency fund is a good place to start. Beyond that you may want to speak to someone about your goals and an investment plan to achieve them. Advice from someone who understands debts and investments can help steer you in the right direction.

No matter your age, you can start planning for financial security now, because without a goal and a plan, wherever you end up will be left up to chance.