Debt-Free Forever Gail Vaz-Oxlade (best ereader for epub TXT) 📖

yourself if you hope to create a new financial reality. Becoming Debt-Free Forever has many components to it, and each of those steps should be goals that you set so that as you move toward the Big Goal, you have successes you can celebrate along the way. Here’s an example of what I mean.

If you’re walking around with $63,472.97 in consumer debt, being consumer debt-free may seem like too large a spoonful to swallow all at once. Instead of choking on a too-big mouthful, take small sips to get the medicine down. Set a milestone along your way to Debt-Free Forever to have that dumb credit card with the 28.8% interest rate and the $5,200 balance paid off by June. Once you’ve swallowed that, you can move on to your next milestone. Take it one step at a time and keep moving forward.

DON’T MAKE YOUR GOALS INTO CEMENT SHOES

A plan followed blindly is as bad as no plan at all. And yet, sometimes when we set a goal for ourselves, we become so slavishly committed to meeting that goal that we can’t see the damage we’re doing to ourselves elsewhere in our lives. There’s no point in being so determined to pay off the mortgage in 10 years or less that you squeeze your budget too tight and end up racking up credit card or line of credit debt when you run short of cash every month. And there’s no point to ruining your relationships with your best buddy because you’re so committed to being debt-free that you become a hellion, uncaring of other people’s needs and of whatever else is happening around you.

Goals, like budgets, must be flexible enough to cope with the changes that crop up in life. Sure you wanted to go back to school to get that degree, but when you found out your Mini-Me was on the way, it was time to adjust the plan. Thinking you could do it all—refusing to shift goals—is a sure way to be disappointed and to disappoint others. As I always say, “You CAN have it all. You just can’t have it all at the same time!”

That’s not to say that every change in your circumstances means another path to take. A change simply means you must pause to think and to re-evaluate. Sometimes sticking with the original plan and avoiding distractions is what will get you to your goals. Sometimes a slight adjustment in the plan will suffice. Sometimes a whole rewrite will be necessary. You must have the flexibility to correct for the winds and turbulence with which you will be faced.

SHOW SOME GUMPTION!

Don’t think that having set a goal, the path you walk to achieve your dream will be a smooth one. Nope. Life has taught me that most paths have some rocks, a few holes, and the odd dragon. But giving up isn’t going to get you to where you want to be. Having some gumption—a combination of courage, resourcefulness, initiative, and common sense—will.

Sometimes the first road you choose isn’t the one you actually want to end up on. You have to try out a road to see whether it’s going the right way and then adjust your direction as you go. Having walked down that road you’ll know one of two things: you like where you’re going or you don’t. Whichever you discover, you’ll know what to do next. You must be brave. Sometimes it takes great courage to fly in the face of what you’ve always considered “normal” and do things differently.

If you’re afraid of failing, you’ve got to let go of that fear. If you miss the mark, correct your aim. Miss again and you’ll have even more experience, more information to go on for the next attempt. A key determinant of whether you’ll be successful is not how many mistakes you make along the way, but how persistent you are. If you don’t give up when facing initial failure, if you’re able to work up the excitement, enthusiasm, and support to push forward, you’re more likely to be successful.

All this is to say that goal setting isn’t a science, it’s an art. It requires that you balance what you need now with what you want in the future. It necessitates juggling competing desires. And it will only work if you accept that Big Goals need to be broken down into smaller, more chewable milestones if you want to stay motivated.

BUILD YOUR SUPPORT SYSTEM

Setting goals and working toward a new financial reality will be tough. You must change your behaviour. You must change your attitude. Your initial energy and enthusiasm will wane within a few weeks because same old, same old is so much more comfortable than change. Having a Goal Pal can help keep you on track, particularly when you’re heading up a steep hill.

Find a body you can count on to support and encourage you, particularly when you backslide. You need a person who will listen and reaffirm your commitment when your doubts threaten to take you off the rails. In my life I’ve used girlfriends, my partner, co-workers, just about anyone who would listen, to help keep me on track when I’m working toward a particularly difficult goal. You won’t need a Goal Pal for every goal, just the ones you’re most likely to try to blow off because making the changes required seems too hard. Hey, if you really want to achieve the goal, you can. You can do anything. It’s just a matter of how badly you want it and how well you equip yourself to get it.

SET SAVINGS GOALS TOO

Anything done to the exclusion of everything else is unhealthy. If you’re so focused on debt repayment that you do not set some goals for building an emergency fund and establishing a retirement savings program, that short-sightedness will come back and bite you in the butt. Having a balanced financial life means taking care of all the details—yes, you’re going to have to