When we hear the term ‘goal’, the very first thing that comes to our mind is a certain objective that a person desires to achieve at some point of time of his life owing to his determination, capability and will power. We all have certain goals in our life. One of the most common goals that everyone shares is ‘to achieve financial stability’. Speaking about financial stability, here, we put forward the idea of being monetarily sufficient to lead a stable life without facing any issues related to money. Financial goals do vary from person to person. Although each one’s goals vary, it is not a compulsion or a possibility at everyone’s part to fulfill those goals. This is due to the difference between the determination and capability of different people. There are certain cases where a person sets much high of a goal than what he is capable of achieving, resulting in nothing but failure and discouragement. One has to keep certain things in the mind while setting the financial goals.

Given below are few basic points that a person should keep in mind while setting any financial goal:

1. When should a person start setting a financial goal? There is no particular age as to when a person should set a financial goal. The age can be as low as 16 to as high as 25-30. The most preliminary thing to be kept in mind is how much the person is aware of his/ her capabilities and validness of his/ her goals. Of course, this can be a bit confusing. This leads to our next point.

2. Know your capabilities: This is the very thing a person should be aware of while setting his/ her financial goal. There is no point of setting a very big goal irrespective of one’s capabilities, as it will result in nothing but inability to fulfill the goal followed by sheer disappointment. It is good to step out of the comfort zone but that does not mean setting higher goals and falling short in completing them.

3. Evaluate the validity of your goal and the deadline set to achieve the same: This is the second most important thing one should keep in mind. A person should set a valid goal that ensures success owing to his/ her capabilities and determination to complete them. It is also important to keep the deadline practical. There is no use of setting a high goal to be completed within a year or two but falling short in completing so due to lack of time and skills. Knowing one’s capabilities and evaluating the validity of his/ her goals go hand in hand.

4. Have appropriate knowledge regarding financial benefits of your goals: Having appropriate idea about how much benefit one is supposed to gain from his/ her goals is another important point one should keep in mind. Thoughts such as “Whether the goal will only provide short term benefit?” or “whether it will provide a long-term benefit?” must be taken into consideration.

5. Take help of a person who has already succeeded in achieving his/ her financial goals: Having some advice from experienced person can help a lot in setting the financial goal. With proper guidance it becomes easier to achieve one’s goal. For example, a student while facing a problem in mathematics asks the respective subject teacher his doubt and not to someone who specializes in any another subject. Similarly taking help of someone who has already achieved financial stability will give a person a true picture of his/ her goal validity and fulfillment.

6. Start investing during an early age and start from a small amount: Investment in various share markets, stock markets and mutual funds is the new age shortcut way of achieving financial goals. No doubt these markets have innumerable number of risk factors. Thus, first try investing in small amounts in different firms and thereafter go for any big amount. Also, investing at an early age is more beneficial than investing at the later age.

7. Do not make any hasty decisions while doing an investment: Do not make quick investments in the mentioned areas such as, mutual funds or share markets, without having proper and adequate knowledge about the entire thing. Do not fall prey to any fraudulent calls or messages and make quick decisions.

8. Consult a financial advisor, if necessary: While facing any difficulties, one can always take help of a verified financial advisor while setting his/ her financial goals. As stated previously, these are a few basic points to be kept in mind while setting a financial goal and actually being able to achieve them. One can always delve deeper into the ocean of knowledge before setting his/ her goal and making the achievement possible. Setting of goals on a long-term basis is very helpful in the modern world which is full of uncertainty and risk.