While figuring out my 2021 money goals, I came up with ten actionable items my family can incorporate into their weekly routines.
What are money goals? Money goals are line items you hope to accomplish that relate to your finances. Examples of finance goals are getting out of debt, tracking your spending, or creating a budget.
When you think about it, money goals should not be treated differently than other goals. They should be actionable, have check-ins, and can be split into long and short term categories.
When trying to decide on some good financial goals for my family, I decided to focus on ten key areas.
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Have A Written Budget
You can’t know where you are going unless you know where you are, right? It was time for me to really figure out where we stood financially and the only way to do that was through a written budget.
Budget planner options:
It’s really important to set up your financial goals ahead of time and track them because they will continue to serve as a guide for years to come and help you manage your money properly.
Enjoy Free Fun
2020 taught us that you don’t need to always paint the town red to have a good time. There are plenty of things we can do at home or locally and still bond with the kids.
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Use The Cash Envelopes System
Using cash envelopes is a great way to really have a firm grasp on how much you spend every week. Down to the penny! Last week, my family started using this system and we are on track to continue the process well into 2021.
We bought these envelopes – which comes with 120 colorful options – and set up our specific categories. Now, we take our time and work through one week at a time.
If you want to follow my journey, be sure to follow Happily Organized on YouTube. I’m going to track my organizational journey through video this year.
All Hands On Deck
A huge goal is to get everyone on board. This is harder than you think. People are just… set in their ways. If I want to get everyone in my family to understand these 2021 money goals, I have to SELL THEM.
That means more cooking at home, more family movie nights, more pizza parties with friends. LESS restaurant visits, LESS weekend getaways, LESS impulse purchases. It isn’t going to be easy.
Lowering Bills
We don’t have any credit card debt. If we did, I would absolutely include that debt in this section. However, my focus is looking at bills – like the cable bill – and eliminating them. What can we get rid of? What can we reduce?
We are going to look at every bill – water, electric, gas, cell phone, you name it – and see what we can do to reduce those fees.
Invest In Myself
There is a direct correlation between investing in myself and my personal money goals for 2021. I am not going to take any more courses. Been there, done that! What I mean by this particular goal is that I plan on spending some time each week watching free content online.
What topics am I interested in?
- Wealth Management
- SEO
- Email Growth
- YouTube Optimization
- Home Organization
- Budgeting Tips
This are the areas that I need the most help and I feel that I need to dedicate time to personal development. If I get better in these categories, my money will grow. Period.
Work On Setting Specific Goals
I recently wrote a blog post geared towards parents who want to help their teens set goals. In it, I outlined that one of the most important things for a parent to teach a child is to create measurable and specific goals.
Goals must be actionable. Goals must have an end date. Well, I must follow my own advice. I can’t just say, “I want to save money” because that means nothing in the end.
Here are some better goals to consider:
- I want to save 10% of every paycheck.
- I want to save $100 a month in a Christmas fund.
- I want to contribute $125 to my IRA every month.
- I want to buy 10 new stocks a month.
As you can see, there is an end date and there is an action. I need to define my financial goals for 2021 and really dive deep when figuring out what I want from every category.
Invest Every Month
We invested pretty heavily in 2020 and it worked in our favor. It is my hope that we keep up this momentum. My husband and I now need to figure out how much we want to invest every month and HOW we will choose what we want to invest in.
This is a deeper conversation that must be had.
Automate Our Bills
Not all of our bills are automated. It’s so crazy to say this, but it’s true. My husband and I literally need to take the time out and just figure this out.
In the meantime, if you want to use this free bill tracker printable, be sure to grab your copy today.
Increase My Side Hustle Output
I have a side hustle. We should all have one of those, right? It is a passion project of mine and I want to turn it into a full-blown earner.
This is going to take some real commitment on my part. I need to work on being a better planner and time manager. I know I can do it now that it’s one of my money goals.
Whether your goal is to get your personal finances back on track or you just want to start being financially responsible, personal financial goals can help. The best part? You can start the examples I listed above immediately!
With a little dedication, you will be on the right track in no time. The New Year is a great time to consider a new financial strategy, but if you come across this post during a different time of the year – start then!
Don’t wait for a specific time. The time is now.