A Personal Finance Guide

Gaining Control of Your Relationship With Money – 10 Questions to Ask When Setting Financial Goals

I’m sure you’ve heard the old saying “If you don’t know where you’re going, how will you know when you get there?” This saying is true in most any setting, but especially so in personal finances. As with most things in life, having long term financial goals along with a plan in place, you’ll have a much easier time reaching where you want to go.

If you are planning on getting married in the not too distant future, or if you’ve never set financial goals with your current spouse, there’s no time like the present. Working together as a financial team to establish your life long goals is a very prudent thing to do. Being on the same page will not only help you achieve your goals, it will also go a long way in eliminating possible arguments down the road.

When getting ready to set your goals, you should both sit down and discuss the following 10 questions. Doing so will provide you with a base from which to develop your goals.

1. What if any hobbies do you both want to pursue that will add fun and recreational opportunities to our lives?

2. Are either of you going to be finishing college or earning a masters degree in the future?

3. How big of a deal is home ownership to both of you?

4. What are both of your career goals?

What kind of further training will either of you will need to accomplish these goals?

5. How much do you want to be involved with the church or charities?

How much money, time or effort am you both interested in giving?

6. What type of character traits do I want to develop in your children?

Be sure your long term financial goals take these traits into consideration.

7. What are your retirement goals?

8. What are your thoughts about any future health care concerns?

9. How soon do you want to pay off your combined debts and be debt free?

10. When the lights are about to be turned out on either of you, what type of things would you both regret if you choose to spend your money on less important pursuits?

From these 10 questions, you should be able to formulate some very realistic goals. Be sure you take the time to write down your goals and values that are important to both of you and your family. Doing so can and will go a long way towards ensuring your life and finances under control. Be sure to revisit your goals on a regular basis to make sure you remain on track.

Bruce has been helping folks with personal finance issues for several years. He started writing about them online in 2008. In addition to his writing, Bruce also operates a number of informative web sites. You can check out his latest website here: Sewing Machine For Sale featuring the Commercial Sewing Machine