How to set financial goals for wealth
Making money requires having an action plan. Keeping money requires knowing how to set financial goals.
Let’s be real… The reason why thousands of real estate agents will descend on Success Summit in Dallas next week is one driving force… They want to make more money. And that’s why one of the things I’ll be sharing is how to set financial goals.
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“I want to make more money” is not a goal; it’s a half-assed statement that’s going to keep your intentions vague and your bank account on the line of “safe.” Do you want “safe” or do you want “comfortable and secure?”
The sad fact is that 80% of all people will end up flat-broke when it comes time to retire. That doesn’t have to be you. That’s why in this week’s blog, I’ll show you just a bit of the type of information I’ll be sharing at Summit about how to set financial goals and put practices in place to achieve them.
Once you know what you’re aiming for, you’re no longer shooting in the dark. So let’s dive right in and shed some light on your finances.
What are financial goals?
Financial goals are specific objectives or targets related to one's finances that individuals or organizations set to achieve within a certain timeframe. These goals can include saving a certain amount of money, paying off debt, investing for retirement, buying a home, starting a business, or achieving a certain level of financial independence. Financial goals help individuals plan, prioritize, and work towards achieving financial stability, security, and success.
How to Set Financial Goals
Step 1: Find Your Cost of Living
This one is very simple, but unfortunately, not many real estate agents take the time to do this.
All you have to do is add up the total costs of everything it takes to run your life:
- Rent/mortgage + utilities
- Marketing and business expenses
- Car payment
- Food and medications
- Fun and entertainment
- Taxes
- Savings
Add up any payments or regular expenses you can think of, then tack on an extra $1,000 because who knows what could happen in life. You could get sick or your car could break down or you could end up spending a little too much on dinner.
This is your Survival Goal. It’s what you need to make consistently every single month just to stay above water. It will not give you a better life and it will not allow you to ever retire.
Step 2: Your Good Life + Dream Goals (Phase 1)
Let’s take it up a step.
What would it look like if you were closing a few more deals and living a realistically better life? Think about that next-step-up home you want to own. How much does it cost? What about a more desirable car? What would your vacations look like?
Get in a relaxed mode and visualize it. Then get on the computer and look up the actual prices. Add them up. Do everything the same as you did with finding your survival goal, then tack on an additional $3,000.
This is your Good Life Goal.
Now take it even a step further. If everything went perfectly for you in the next 12 months and the money was flowing in, what would your business look like? How much would you be spending on marketing with all your new lead gen sources? Where would you be living?
This is your dream life, and once you know how much it costs, you have your Dream Goal.
Step 3: Adjust for the Future
It’d be so nice and easy if we could just stop at step 2 and live in dreamland, wouldn’t it?
Unfortunately, that’s how you become a member of the 80% of agents who will be working until they die.
What you need to do now is find the REAL numbers it will take to live those life goals now and in the future.
Do a 10-year forecast of your life, imagining that at the end of these 10 years, you’re going to step away from your business and just live.
Write down all three goals, then multiply each by 12 (to bring them to a yearly amount), then multiply them by 10 (for ten years).
Let’s say your Good Life Goal is $125,000 a year. Over 10 years, that means you’ll have made $1,250,000. Now let’s start cutting this down.
- 35% goes to taxes
- 25% to running your business
- 25% to running your home
- Leaving 15% that you either saved or invested
Going by this, at the end of 10 years, you can now comfortably live your same lifestyle for a remarkable ONE YEAR and some months!
Pretty scary huh? That’s why you need to start thinking about these things now.
This step is not over until you find a 10-year number that you’re comfortable with. You either need to start cutting down on some of the expenses or raise the number entirely.
Step 4: Find the Strategies to Reach These Numbers
Now you have your refined Good Life and Dream goals. It’s time to look for strategies that can help you achieve them. The plays you’re running right now will not get you there.
Luckily, you have an opportunity to see exactly how to reach yearly numbers that WILL earn you a more than comfortable retirement.
At this year’s special 20th anniversary Success Summit, we’re giving away one set of our Ultimate Real Estate Playbooks. These are case studies of the exact plays that some of our top coaching clients are running that produce serious results. You’ll learn:
- Who these agents are and the breakdown of their business models
- How much they’re making a year
- Their primary lead gen pillars and conversion strategies
- Exactly how to run your business like theirs, with a step-by-step breakdown of every strategy
When you set financial goals, they don’t get achieved without a financial plan. So you can either choose a fully formed plan like we’ve created and modify it how you wish, or you can figure something out on your own.
Step 5: Choose Your Who and Why
I’m not perfect; I’m human, just like everyone else. And that means I’ve found that I’m capable of breaking the promises that I make to myself. But what I’ve also noticed is that I NEVER break a promise that I make to others – especially those I care about.
Most people won’t tirelessly grind day-in and day-out just for themselves, but they will do it for their spouse, their kids, their parents, or their coach.
You need accountability. I need accountability. We all need it. It’s the cornerstone of greatness. Find yours. Don’t skip this step.
Step 6: Decide Where Your Money Will Flow
We’ve already talked about breaking your money down into categories. If all that money stays in one account then those are just invisible boxes that will stay in your head and soon fade away to nothing.
I sincerely hope that you’re not depositing your checks into a personal checking account. If you are, stop that now and open up a business account. I’m not your financial advisor, so the type of account you choose to open is between you and them.
But once you have that business account open, you need to start opening a few more accounts and moving the money appropriately right away into each:
- Tax account
- Home account
- Fun account
- Savings account
- Investment account (Don’t make the mistake of not buying enough of your own product)
- Business expenses account
There are a lot more but start with these. And if you haven’t seen this video, be sure to check it out.
Step 7: Make a Commitment
You’ve decided what you want, refined it, chosen a strategy to get you there, set up accountability, and put your banking system in order.
Now I want you to make a written and verbal promise to those holding you accountable that says you will follow this plan and achieve these goals by doing everything you possibly can.
It’s time to become the best possible version of yourself because now your ass is on the line. If you’re really serious about making the transformation and finding your Path Forward to generational wealth, then I’ll see you at the Summit.
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