Why Are Goals and Plans Essential to Financial Health?

             Families, communities, and nations are stronger when parents lead their family in setting financial goals and in creating a financial plan. Children are never too young to learn that money is a tool to be used with wisdom and good judgment.

            Jesus Christ taught His followers to set goals and make plans when He said the following: “For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?” (Luke 14:28).

            President M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints often speaks about goals and the importance of using them to achieve success. He made the following statement in Preach My Gospel:

I am thoroughly convinced that if we don’t set goals in our life and learn how to master the techniques of living to reach our goals, we can reach a ripe old age and look back on our life only to see that we reached but a small part of our potential. When one learns to master the principles of setting a goal, he will then be able to make a great difference in the results he attains in this life.”

            President Ballard emphasized that setting goals and working a plan is the process for reaching our potential. Another prophet, President Ezra Taft Benson gave the following counsel:

Plan for your financial future. As you move through life toward retirement and the decades which follow, we invite all … to plan frugally for the years following full-time employment. Be even more cautious … about “get-rich” schemes, mortgaging homes, or investing in uncertain ventures. Proceed cautiously so that the planning of a lifetime is not disrupted by one or a series of poor financial decisions. Plan your financial future early; then follow the plan (“To the Elderly in the Church,” October 1989 General Conference).

            President Benson counsel reminded of the importance of a road map when traveling the highways. We know where we want to be, and the map shows us how to get there. Financial goals are where we want to be, and the financial plan tells us how to get there.

E. Jeffrey Hill and Bryan L. Sudweeks wrote a textbook titled Fundamentals of Family Finance – Living Joyfully within Your Means. In the first chapter, they taught the importance of families setting goals and creating family finance plans to meet those goals. They gave six steps to follow for setting financial goals and creating financial plans.

Step 1: Decide what you are about. [Determine what your core values are.]

Step 2: Evaluate your financial health. [Where are you financially now?]

Step 3: Define your family goals. [This is where you write down your goals and attach a cost to each of them. Also, determine the obstacles that may be in the way.]

Step 4: Develop a plan of action. [Think long term. What will your family need in the future? Develop a budget, track purchases, plan for managing debt and eliminating it, and plan for insurance. Write your investment plan and follow it. Plan for children’s college, missions, and marriages. Plan early and live your plan.]

Step 5: Implement your plan. [Use common sense in making your goals and creating your plan. Work towards your goals every day. Stay positive.]

Step 6: Revise your plan, as necessary. [Do not be surprised when you need to adjust your plan because people and goals change. Review your goals annually at minimum and assure that your goals and plan agree.]

            Take an eternal view of your family. Set your goals high and reach for the stars. The most important goal that any of us can set is to become like Jesus Christ. As we follow His teachings, He will help us achieve our goals and show us where we need to adjust our plan. By learning and teaching how to set financial goals and create a financial plan, parents can strengthen their family, which will in turn strengthen their community and nation.