My Financial Resolution for 2008

The New Year is steadily coming toward us, and I think now is a good time for me to share my financial resolutions for the New Year. Writing my resolution down is a good way for me to remember it, and more importantly, to hold myself accountable over the course of next year.

What is my financial resolution? To educate myself more about investing (specifically value and dividend investing, and asset allocation) and be able to share and apply this knowledge. If you are a longtime reader, you will notice that I write in general terms regarding investing, but rarely in specific terms.

I am currently doing the right thing by investing regularly through payroll deductions and paying myself first, which is wonderful. I also invest primarily in low cost index funds – score another point. But, I would like to have more knowledge about investing (specifically value and dividend investing, and asset allocation) and be able to share and apply this knowledge. I feel that there is so much more that I could be doing, and I want to find out what exactly that is.

How am I going to do this? I will do this by reading several books and websites, and using a SMART goal, which means Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, Timely (although people sometimes have slightly different interpretations of the SMART acronym). SMART Goals are a great way to set a goal because they ensure your goal meets specific criteria and can be accomplished.

My SMART Goal:

• Specific – I plan on learning more about investing, specifically dividend and value investing, and asset allocation.
• Measurable – It is tough to measure learning or knowledge, but in my opinion, I will feel comfortable with the concepts if I can write an easy to understand article on these topics.
• Actionable – This is 100% actionable. I have several books on these topics, and the desire and capacity to learn.
• Realistic – My goal is to learn and share information, not become an expert, which is very realistic.
• Timely – I have a year to learn and share information about these 3 topics.

This is my Financial Resolution for the New Year. If you care to share your own Financial Resolution for the New Year, you can submit them to the Carnival of Financial Goals which will be posted December 5th.

Share your financial goal for an opportunity to win a 4GB iPod nano! All you have to do is share your 2008 Financial Resolution with me using a SMART Goal format and tell why you chose this goal and how you will accomplish it. If you have your own blog, simply write your own 2008 Financial Resolution and contact me when you publish your post (otherwise I may not know about it). Be sure to write “2008 Financial Resolution” as the e-mail topic. If you do not have your own blog and would like to enter, please leave a comment with your financial resolution on this article. Read more information about iPod the giveaway.

Please note: Entries that do not meet the SMART criteria (Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, Timely) will not be considered for entry. This is to ensure that people are making a conscious effort at making a real financial goal, instead of simply writing a statement to enter into the giveaway.

• Example of SMART Goal: My financial goal is to pay off a $6,000 student loan over the course of the new year. I will do this by making a $500/month payment. This statement is specific, measurable, actionable, realistic and timely. Remember, you must also indicate why you chose this goal and how you will accomplish it.
• Example of unsatisfactory entry: I want to pay off my debt. This statement has no specific goal, is not measurable, and does not include the answer to the questions why or how.

I look forward to reading your financial goals!

Complete information regarding iPod giveaway.

Image source: Amazon 4GB iPod nano

Tagged as: financial goals, giveaway, Goals, iPod