Every so often my husband and I sit down to discuss our finances. Among our favorite topics is what to do with the money we saved.
Sometimes we save with a specific goal in mind. We may want to remodel our bathroom, save for a larger car or take a much needed vacation. Other times we save with absolutely no purpose other than to set money aside.
A year and a half ago we decided to forgo the bathroom upgrades and new-to-us car so I could stay home with my son. With money in the bank we thought that the transition to a one income household would be slightly less scary. It was nice to know we had money in the bank if we needed it to fall back on.
As time passes our priorities shift, but no matter how our day-to-day decisions change over the years we still keep ‘one day’ goals in the back of our mind. ‘One day’ goals are those aspirations that are too distant to focus on day in and day out. They are dreams that won’t come to fruition for at least ten or twenty years. You hope that they will happen one day, but there is no telling when that day will come.
Our one day goals sound so simple, yet seem so hard to achieve. They are as follows:
- Pay off the mortgages of our two homes in less than 10 years
- Build a waterfront property. (This will probably involve selling the vacation property we currently own and using the money to build a new one.)
- Work fewer hours each week at a rewarding and interesting job. (This involves my husband working less, but also includes the understanding that I will return to work at some point in the next five years.)
In my dream scenario we would meet at all of these goals in the next ten years. By the ripe old age of 45 I would be mortgage free, living in a cozy house by the shore, working less and enjoying my job.
In reality I’m not sure what will happen, but regardless of how things play out it sure feels nice to dream about those ‘one day’ goals.
How about you? Do you set long term goals? If so, what are they?
We definitely set long term goals. Right now our two biggest goals are paying off the mortgage and setting money aside in 529 plans for our two young kids.
Is your bathroom model on permanent hold? Curious because we also have money set aside for a bathroom remodel but have yet to take the plunge.
Your goals sound a lot like mine – and your situation does, too. It’s been almost three years since my husband and I decided I’d leave my job to stay home with our kids, and almost two and a half years since we put our plan into action. I ultimately ended up with a job that let me work from home (stumbled upon quite by accident), and now the rest of our “long term” dreams are coming true!