Photo by Bich Tran

By Mark Heeter

At the turn of each of the past three or four years, my son and I have had fun scribbling down resolutions, balling them up, stuffing them into a beer stein, and putting them into a cabinet. We pulled them out a few days ago to see how we had done. Not too bad. We both hit a couple and missed a couple. There was the one about a taking a trip that we recycled, the year 2021 scratched through. And 2022. And we still haven’t made that trip.

A sense of determination came over me. We’ve decided that this will be the year.

Much as I’ve enjoyed this annual ritual, we’ve both decided not to do them this year. Not because of the trip we haven’t made or because of the weight I haven’t lost. We both came up with something different. He has this new idea to write down one cool thing that he did each week. I hope he sticks to it. And I simply have one goal that I am going to reach.

This will be a continuation of one of the resolutions I had made at the beginning of 2023. I reached my goal, and I’m going to continue to expand on it and build on the momentum. In the first six days of the year, I have already switched twice the specific action items that I will take to reach my goal. But yesterday, six days in, I had a breakthrough.

I saw something, seized the opportunity, sent an email, made a phone call, had a couple of conversations with people who are eager to help me reach my goal. And I’m off to the races.

I’ve done the math, and based on the specific action item I changed yesterday, I’ll easily blow through my goal. If things go according to plan and work out the way I think and hope they will.

That’s the funny thing about goals. They stay the same, but the road we take to get there can be winding and frustrating. Let’s take a specific financial goal that you might have. Pick any of them. We’ll go with the big one. You say, “I want to build up an emergency fund.”

Do you know where you are on the path to building that cushion? Say you want to have $1,000. That’s a real number you can start to build around. Start with the goal in mind. Take the first step. Ask yourself how long will it take you to get there? You just did something. It might seem very small, but laying down that question was your first step.

Now that you’ve made your first of tomorrow’s money moves, ask yourself another question: “From my paycheck, how much can I save each month for that emergency fund goal?” Your response will help answer the first question you asked about how long it would take. Second step. While you’re working on how much you can save each month, you might discover a way for you to trim even the smallest expense from your budget. Just a few bucks a week, and you just knocked out the third step.

This is a critical feature of goal setting and – more importantly – goal attainment: progress. Achieving a goal is one long journey filled with smaller steps. Every single one counts and contributes, in big ways and small.   

We have to remain flexible and open to frustration and challenges when we are pursuing our goals. We have to show ourselves grace, because life will happen. Let’s look at your $1,000 emergency fund and imagine that you pop $100 in there each month. You’re confident, excited, optimistic and see the goal getting closer with each passing month – until a trip to the dentist for a toothache sets you back $300.

Or your goal might involve the assistance of someone else, who just doesn’t come through for you. This happens all the time, especially with people who have saving or spending goals. Maybe it wasn’t intentional, but their failure to hold up their end of the bargain threw you off-course. You can work around these setbacks, and they might even delay a timeline you’ve had in your head.

Have a vision. Picture your goals. Take the first step, even in its smallest form. I know I will, and I’ll be sure to let you know next year how I did.