Many people never take time to truly establish goals for their lives. They either don’t see the point or they don’t believe it’s important. Some people don’t know what they want out of life while others are afraid to set goals for fear of not achieving them. And some people don’t even know how to begin setting goals because they’ve never given it much thought.

But setting goals is what provides you with the roadmap to achieving the things that are important to you. Establishing a goal drives you to a destination. And reaching your destination helps you establish new goals. It’s a lifelong process of deciding where you want to go, creating plans to get there, and establishing new goals once you arrive.

Reaching your goals is a fulfilling and satisfying experience. It gives you confidence and motivation to move forward. It also gives you the satisfaction of knowing that you have accomplished an important milestone in your life while holding true to your personal values.

It has been said that a goal is a “dream with a date.” By writing your goals down and identifying the specific steps that need to be taken in order for you to realize your goal along with a specific date for completion, you breathe life into what otherwise may be just wishful thinking. It simply isn’t enough to say, “I want to…” Goals need structure and living a simple, debt free lifestyle demands structure and organization.

Once you realize how your financial wealth, or lack of it, impacts the rest of your life, you will be much more inclined to get your financial house in order and keep it that way. It all starts with an honest assessment of where you are now and where it is you want to go. This may mean examining whether or not you want to continue in your current career and/or examining every penny that is spent to determine exactly where your money is going.

Goal setting is really exciting because it gives you control.  For example, while you may not be able to control the price of gas, you can certainly control the route you take when you run errands and you can ensure that your vehicle is getting the best gas mileage possible by making sure the tires are properly inflated and that you’re not carrying excess weight.

Speaking of gas mileage, do you need to evaluate your current vehicle to see if driving it is in line with your financial goals? Your initial assessment should include everything that you spend money on to see if it is in line with the lifestyle you are aiming for. You might even consider taking the bus or carpooling to cut down on vehicle expenses. It all depends on what your goals and values are. You probably don’t need a top-of-the-line car, cell phone, TV or computer. Controllong your debt is has to be the top priority.

Start today to set goals that will lead to you living the lifestyle you have always dreamed of instead of the lifestyle you may have fallen into due to debt.

This entry was posted on Saturday, November 22nd, 2008 at 10:43 pm and is filed under Debt Free Living. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.