Sometimes we plan a few years in advance if the goal is a big one. For the last two years we've been saving for a new car for me. That's two years of saving with another three years to go. My car is working just fine but it is almost ten years old and won't last forever. When we get to our goal in three years time, if my car is still running trouble free, we'll just keep those savings locked away and start saving for Darren's new car. To achieve my ' new car ' goal, we've worked out how much we want to spend on a car, when we might need it, then divided it into a monthly savings goal.
Next year is our 25th wedding anniversary and we'd love to go to the Cook Islands with a short stop over in New Zealand on the way back. We've decided to go all out and stay in luxury accommodation when at the Cook Islands. This comes at a large cost so we've been saving for the last three years with another twelve months worth of saving to go before we reach our goal.
Home renovations and repairs are usually ongoing. Each year we work out what needs replacing and what is the most urgent. As we save, we do our research along the way to find the best deals / brands and to make sure we are saving enough money in the allotted time.
Family goals could include children's activities and sports. Your children might be involved in too many activities that it's harming the family budget or encroaching on quality family time. Re-evaluating what's important and if it's working should be done before the new season / term begins.
Maybe this year is the year to start your children in sports, clubs or a new hobby. Ask around, do your research and do the sums. There can be extra costs for costumes, competitions, travel, equipment, camps or extra training. Can your budget cope with this ?
Using the first couple of months of a new year to set your goals gives you a great chance of achieving them. Talking about doing this or that one day is not a plan, just a dream. Dreams are great, but making a plan to reach those dreams is far more satisfying.
Here are some of our previous goals -
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| Any excuse to post another photo of my new kitchen 2016 |
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| Brisbane holiday 2018 |
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| Darren's car 2015 - from memory |
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| New lounge suite was 2018's goal. Arrived last month |
What are your goals for this year and how will your achieve them ?
Links to the other posts in this series -Getting Your Year Into Gear - The Family Budget
Getting Your Year Into Gear - The Gift Giving Budget
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Hi Wendy. I don’t normally comment on the blogs I read but, I think you are a smart lady. You have a lot of frugal advice and you practice what you teach. I’ve learned a lot of frugal ideas by reading your blog. I loved watching the videos about your frugal life but sadly can no longer access those. Thanks for your inspiration.
ReplyDeleteCindy, I'm just happy to share what I know and do.
DeleteMaybe I should have a movie night at my place to watch the tv stories ( giggle giggle )
I have so many financial goals in the coming few years, I'm unsure how I will achieve them as there are constantly so many bills to pay, but mine are
ReplyDelete- saving for a holiday at the end of the year
- saving for a new car in the next few years (my current car is around 7 years old)
- saving for potentially having a baby in the next 1-2 years
Cindy
They are great goals and well worth saving for. Is there anything in your budget you can cut out or reduce to reach your goals ?
DeleteThis year I plan to bring the grocery spend under control.
ReplyDeleteI need another hand surgery and since I have a co-payment I would like to have it done before June 30. I paid to have my right hand done in January. I will capitalise on that.
That's a great plan for the surgery.
DeleteDo you know how you will reduce your grocery bill ?
i need to get renovations finished, some painting done & gardens landscaped; i try to get little bits done as i can afford them, being on a pension takes me twice as long to save any money; just had a little bit of plumbing work done, which is not finished, he's coming back to replace my shower head & arm & put new washers in.
ReplyDeleteit seems to be ongoing with work here but my goal is to one day have a lovely cozy cottage
thanx for sharing
Selina, do you have a friend or family member who can replace the shower head for you ? Replacing washers is usually easy too.
DeleteKeeping a home in tip top shape can be draining on the savings. Planning ahead will get the job done.
You inspire me so much with your discipline Wendy. I’ve been drifting along for some time now, with no real goals or purpose, I had a year of poor health last year which contributed to my lack of enthusiasm, but I’m beginning to feel better now and I’ve set myself a couple of big goals. The first is to finish my cross stitch, and the second is to get my large, steep, back garden under control, tidied up and mulched. It’s a huge task, we are on a double block, but I’m setting a goal of 1 1/2 hours a day (on non work days) to achieve it. I’ve only just started, so a very long way to go yet, I hope I can stick to it! Also we are saving 20% of our income to pay for school fees next year and a few big ticket items we need for our house.
ReplyDeleteCheryl, we've always had goals to work towards. I'll admit in the early days when we earned so little, the goals were a lot smaller too. Having those goals helps us feel better when life or health gets in the way of happiness.
DeleteHi Wendy,
ReplyDeleteI love your blog but don’t comment often, can I recommend somewhere to stay in Rarotonga? We have stayed twice at the Palm Grove Resort and loved it both times. It really is the most beautiful place to stay, the owners/managers love this place and are the most lovely of hosts. The resort is in front of the most beautiful part of Rarotonga with pristine water and magnificent snorkeling opportunities. It is like swimming in an aquarium as there are so many fish to see. We spent our 25th wedding anniversary there and I surprised hubby with a special day trip to Aitutaki which has to be seen to be believed. The colour of the water is the most amazing colour of turquoise and there is so much sea life to see.
I love that you plan your year, I always say if you don’t plan you don’t do! Fi
Thankyou for all the Cook Islands inof. We are hoping to stay in Rarotonga for 4 nights and Aitutaki for another 4. I will certainly look up the Palm Cove Resort. Is it a resort that has lots of kids staying there ? We'd prefer a quiet holiday without screaming kids if possible.
DeleteOops, I meant info.
DeleteEverything is beautiful.
ReplyDeleteGreat job on your goal achieving! Wow! And might I say that my toes curled over your kitchen tile? I love it!
ReplyDeleteOur low income doesn't allow for luxuries at all. Sometimes we can barely eke out what is necessary. However, we do have small goals for something fun that we can achieve with effort. And we can never really try for more than one at a time. There's just not the available funds. Not complaining, just stating the facts. We just keep stashing what we can when we can and pray a lot!!
That said, we are working to replace the main level carpeting. The basement carpet is like new. And after that, the 23 yr. old sofa. It's not going as well as I had hoped so I'm a little disappointed. I was hoping it would be by late spring, but now I'd be surprised if it was by late fall. Still working towards it tho'!
I'm much better at achieving the goals that cost nothing!!
Debby, Darren and I live on a very low income too. In saying that, we don't have a mortgage so it does make life much easier for us.
DeleteA goal is a goal no matter how big or small