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5:34 pm
March 23, 2015
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Derek@LifeAndMyFinances
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Hi all,
I'm writing a post about 'how to stay motivated to keep your long term financial goals'. What do you do to stay motivated? Sometimes, it's difficult to save for your future. Why save for retirement when you can enjoy it right now?
Respond to this question and I'll likely mention your answer with a link to your site. Thanks for the help!
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6:32 am
March 24, 2015
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The Frugal Toad
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Hi Derek!
Great question. My time horizon may be a little different than your's, I'm looking at retirement in 6-9 years from now. Saving for retirement is a top priority for me and staying motivated is important if I want to meet the goal of retiring early. Having a plan is a big part of what keeps me motivated. I use Quicken to keep track of my retirement accounts and I also use the retirement planner to project future income and expenses and also to monitor my progress. I use the what-if scenario to see the impact certain financial decisions have on my projected balances before making any decision. It's comforting to know that I am making the right financial moves today and that's all the motivation I need!
Paul
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1:30 pm
March 24, 2015
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Eliza Cross
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Dear Derek,
What a terrific idea for a post. My answer is a little geeky, but I stay motivated by calculating my net worth at the beginning of each new month. I set annual goals, and I also try to inch up that bottom line each and every month. This habit has helped me because it keeps me very honest. In the past I might think, "Good for me; I saved $200 this month!" without acknowledging that I had charged $400 worth of stuff on credit cards. Now it's all there in black and white, which has helped me stay focused on eliminating debt and building wealth.
I can't wait to read your article and get some more ideas.
All the best,
Eliza
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6:43 am
March 25, 2015
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Financial Samurai
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Hi Derek,
I stay motivated by reminding myself how lucky we are to live in the US, where anything is possible. Growing up overseas in developing countries showed me that millions of people aren't as lucky. We should make the most out of our situation and never take our circumstances for granted.
There can't be failure due to a lack of effort. For that would dishonor those who never even got the chance.
Best,
Sam
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Regards,
Sam
Financial Samurai - Helping you achieve financial freedom sooner, rather than later.
Yakezie Network Founder
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3:16 pm
March 25, 2015
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Funancials
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I don't want this to come across as insensitive, but I often look at old people with no money for motivation. Early in my career, I had the chance to work with both high net worth retirees and elderly individuals that solely relied on social security. With this experience, I was taught that a little planning goes a long way.
If you want to be a burden on your children and be miserable later, then spend as much money on things that don't matter right now. If you want to leave a legacy, live a stress-free life and never have to worry about money, then apply a little will power and delay some gratification until later.
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7:29 pm
March 25, 2015
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Michael @ The Student Loan Sherpa
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| Member | posts 71 |
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My experiences with student loans taught me the long term consequences of only thinking about the short term. I won't make the same mistakes when it comes to retirement planning.
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12:31 pm
March 28, 2015
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colormefrugal
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Hi Derek,
We stay motivated by calculating our net worth quarterly. Every time we run the numbers it's a good reminder of where we've been and where we are headed financially. If we stopped calculating our net worth I think I'd feel like a car without a steering wheel. I'd be able to move, but I wouldn't be nearly as easily able to have an impact on where I'm going! Running the numbers on a regular basis helps keep our head in the game, so to speak. It's a reminder of the fact that we have goals and dreams, and we want to achieve them before we're super old and gray!
Good luck on this post! Sounds like a good one!
Dee
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9:27 pm
March 29, 2015
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Suburban Finance
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Hi Derek,
I stay focused by making progress toward them regularly, breaking them down, and focusing on those small wins. For instance, say I have a goal to have $1,000,000 in my retirement account by the time I'm 50. My approach to ensure that I don't lose sight of a goal that seems so far away is to break the goal down. So how much do I need to save by the end of the year to reach that goal? Then, I work toward reaching the mini-goal so I don't get lost in how far away the bigger goal is.
:)
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8:41 am
March 30, 2015
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Derek@LifeAndMyFinances
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Thanks for the great responses everyone! So far I have broken your responses down into 5 categories, which should make for a great post! Anyone else want to give their 2 cents?
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7:29 pm
March 31, 2015
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Moneysma
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My wife and I use visual reminders to keep us on our path. We defined what retirement looks like to us, in detail, and place visual reminders around to keep us on track. It's easy to see a commercial for a new Nike driver for golf and "forget" about our long-term goals. By having the visual reminders placed around the house (and as backgrounds on our smartphones) we are always reminded of why we are doing what we are doing.
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9:53 am
April 1, 2015
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krantcents
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It is real simple! Take your long term goals and establish daily/weekly/monthly/yearly milestones. The next step is creating tasks to help you achieve the objectives (milestones). It worked for me.
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4:18 am
May 4, 2015
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Derek@LifeAndMyFinances
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Hi All,
So I'm a little slow letting you all know, but many of your thoughts were put into the post. Check it out!
How to Stay Motivated on Your Long-Term Goals
Thanks again for the input!
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7:59 pm
May 7, 2015
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OneCentAtatime
| | Florida, USA | |
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Food work and good contribution from all!
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