A significant part of managing your finances well is your ability to plan for the future. While you can’t predict every curveball life will throw at you, being prepared, setting goals, and constantly working to better your financial position are crucial steps to your success.
As you turn on the TV or glance through the latest news stories, you can’t help but hear about the “Great Resignation.” With more and more people leaving their current jobs, businesses are struggling to find workers. Due to staffing shortages, some companies are even adjusting their hours or closing one or two days a week.
When it comes to New Year’s resolutions, saving more money and improving one’s financial standing always come out near the top of the list. And having a great credit score can help you accomplish both.
Every January, it's the same deal: You resolve to save more money, pay off your debts, and get your financial situation in order. Then February comes along and you're back to your old habits. If you've broken New Year's resolutions in the past, you're not alone.
Many of the things you do daily are simply a habit. Whether it's buying coffee on the way to work or a $10 a day lunch habit, they can potentially harm your budget. Similar to how bad financial habits can get you into trouble, good financial habits can keep you out of trouble.
Everyone sets goals. Typically, these goals fall into two categories - short-term and long-term. Short-term goals may consist of saving for a well-deserved vacation or shedding 10 lbs. before summer. Long-term goals focus more on what you want to accomplish in life and retirement planning.
What does the term "financial independence" mean to you? For some people, the phrase means a way for you to have all the luxuries and comforts for your home and family without being restricted by your finances. For other people, it may mean financial stability where your income is higher than your collective debt as you can comfortably live within your means.
Let's face it, reaching financial goals requires discipline — the discipline that many of us don't have. We can't pass by the coffee shop in the morning without stopping for a large cup of Joe and a muffin, we're tempted when we see that big-screen television on sale, and we're convinced that new iPhone® has our name on it.
Most people have financial goals that they would love to accomplish. Some of these may be smaller, such as going on a weekend getaway. Others may require a more significant and costly commitment, like saving for a down payment on a home or finally paying off that $7,000 credit card balance.
So you’re enjoying life, working a job that gets you decent money, and you’re ready to move forward in life. Maybe you’re someone who takes life “one day at a time,” or perhaps you just “go through the motions” of making money and paying bills in a never-ending cycle. If you’re really ready to move forward in life, there’s one thing you cannot live without, a financial vision.
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