LIVING YOUR BEST LIFE (AND BUDGET)

LIVING YOUR BEST LIFE AND BUDGET

Financial goals do require some level of sacrifice. However, just because we cannot do everything we want whenever we want does not mean we cannot enjoy life while setting and achieving financial goals. No matter where you are at financially, there will always be someone who has more. It is so important not to compare what others are doing, or what they have. Stay focused on your values and your goals while living within your means. Enjoying things that you can actually afford will give you a much more satisfying life than living beyond your budget and ending up in a difficult financial situation.

DEFINE YOUR BEST LIFE

Take a moment to really think about what ‘living your best life’ means to you. It’s different for everyone. Your best life might could be working hard at your dream career, spending quality time with family, or simply finding joy in everyday moments. It could be some of all of those things. There’s no right answer.  What matters is that you really think about what it is that is important to you. This will help you plan your time and budget around those things.

LIVE WITHIN YOUR MEANS

Best lives are not achieved by living a life that is way inflated as it compares to your financial resources. Living within your means is key to living your best life. There is nothing fun about wondering how you will pay your bills when they come. Making minimum payments on credit cards because you spent more on a vacation than you could really afford creates more stress in the long run. Making the most of your budget by prioritizing your spending feels so much better than spending money you know you don’t really have

As your income grows over time save at least a portion of the growth instead of increasing your expenses to match it. This will allow you to save for so many more things that you would like to have in the future. This doesn’t have to be all for long-term savings, you could save up for a trip you want to take in the summer. It’s just about making sure to put that money to use to impact your life in a positive way rather than inflating your lifestyle costs and seeing no real benefit.

SET FINANCIAL GOALS

Setting financial goals is an important step for mapping out your best life. Even if the things you love cost little money, financial security is still important to cover the basic necessities in life so that you can enjoy the things you value. When setting financial goals, it is really important to be specific. Specific goals are easier to track and achieve.

If you set a goal to “save more money”, what does that mean?  How do you know if you reached your goal and are ready to set the next goal? Instead, try setting a more specific goal such as “I want to save $1,000 by the end of the year”. With this goal, you have a specific amount to save so you can see if you are staying on track. You also have a timeline which can help keep you focused. Setting long-term goals is great also, but setting smaller goals along the way for shorter periods will help keep you motivated as you keep hitting milestones that you set for yourself.

EMERGENCY FUND

If you don’t yet have an emergency fund or would like to build it up more from where it is at definitely make this one of our goals to achieve your best life. Having an emergency fund is so important because it provides us with a safety net to protect us against unexpected costs that could cause financial hardships. It’s very difficult to stick to a financial plan without an emergency fund. While an emergency fund can’t protect us against everything that may happen, it’s great to have no matter what situation might arise. For the most part, it will be able to cover the normal range of financial emergencies that occur during the course of our lives. Saving for an emergency fund might not be the most exciting thing to save for, but it’s very exciting to have when something comes up and you have the money set aside.

HAVE A PURPOSE BEHIND YOUR GOALS

When setting your financial goals, make sure you have a purpose in mind. Saving a certain amount of money with no purpose is going to be more difficult to be excited about. If you are saving for an emergency fund think about the security that this will give you and the freedom it will provide to focus on the things that are important to you. Saving for a vacation or a major purchase can be exciting and motivating also. Long-term savings, such as retirement savings, can allow you to look forward to continuing to live your best life without worrying about having to work into your later years.

ESTABLISH GOALS THAT HELP YOU MEET YOUR CURRENT AND FUTURE NEEDS

Consider the life you would like to live now, as you are setting your financial goals. You will need to make some decisions on where you can cut back in order to achieve the goals you are working on. However, make sure to allow yourself some freedom to spend money today on the things you enjoy in life. There needs to be a balance.  You can decide what you are willing to give up and what you are not willing to give up.

Don’t set your goals so high that they make it impossible to have any enjoyment in your daily life now. It is important to save money for various things and to prepare for your future. But, you don’t want to set such high goals to enjoy life in the future, by completely taking away any enjoyment you have in the life you are living now. There is nothing wrong with setting a goal a little smaller to make it attainable, and then building on it from there over time.

SPEND ON THINGS THAT YOU REALLY VALUE

When you take the time to consider what it is that you really value, you can often cut back spending in other areas that are not as important. Most of us cannot afford to have everything, so taking a look at where your money is going can really help you see if you are spending on the right things. Take some time to really think about what is most important to you in your life. Then review your expenses and see what costs you might have that don’t really align with those values. Maybe you are spending more on take-out food than you would like.  Possibly, you have a car that is a bit more luxurious than you really care about. When you know what is really important you can often find some areas to cut back.

FIND THINGS YOU ENJOY THAT DON’T COST A LOT OF MONEY

There are often many things you can do to really enjoy your life that cost little to no money. Of course, everything you enjoy will not likely be free or inexpensive. However, if you can fill in the gaps with some low-cost activities, you can have more money available for the things you love that do cost more money. Plus, it’s just really great to find things that you can have a lot of fun with without having to spend a lot of money. There are so many things that we can enjoy that we sometimes forget to take advantage of.

Something just as simple as going for a walk at a local park, playing a board game, or reading a book can make your day really fun without spending much at all. Depending on where you live, you can often find many free local events to attend on a free day. You could consider volunteering your time with an organization that helps a cause that is important to you. If you get a little creative you can often find many things that you can get a lot of joy out of that will not use a lot of your financial resources.

CELEBRATE YOUR PROGRESS

Financial progress deserves recognition and celebration. Track your progress and celebrate milestones. If you hit a savings goal or pay off debt, acknowledge that accomplishment. These things are not easy to do and many people never take the time to do them. So, be proud of yourself and celebrate. Then get excited about your next goal!

Thanks so much for checking in! If you would like to hear the podcast version of this topic check out Lola’s Frugal Life Podcast! Also, be sure to check out my other blog posts on this site!

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