Key Takeaways:
- SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
- An example would be to buy 3 $250,000 homes in 10 years by saving 60% of your income and getting a side hustle to aid with your early retirement.
- Tools to help with creating and managing SMART goals are Clickup, actiTIME, and Engagedly.
To achieve money mastery while serving, you must know how to set SMART financial goals in the military.
Here, we’ll show you all about SMART financial goals.
Setting SMART goals have allowed my wife and me to buy 3 homes outright, valued at over $800,000, while we were enlisted.
So if you’re interested in getting laser-focused on an objective, which tools will help you along the way, and more…
Check out the helpful read below!
What Is A SMART Goal?
Besides pure magic, the best way to achieve our dreams and goals, and save more money in the military, is to create a detailed plan. This is where SMART goal setting comes in. SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
A specific goal is something that you can clearly describe and visualize. It answers the questions of who, what, where, when, and why. A particular purpose is not vague or ambiguous.
A measurable goal is something that you can track and measure progress. You should be able to see and feel whether you are progressing toward your goal.
An achievable goal is something that you can realistically achieve, given your current circumstances. Therefore, setting goals that challenge you but are still within reach is essential.
A relevant goal is something important to you and aligned with your values. A goal that is not relevant is a waste of time.
A time-bound goal has a deadline. This creates a sense of urgency and motivation to achieve the goal.
SMART goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. Setting SMART goals increases your chances of achieving your dreams and reaching your full potential.
How To Set A SMART Financial Goal As A Military Member
How?
That’s easy!
I’ll give you a real-world personal example.
As I stated earlier, I used the SMART goal method to purchase multiple real estate properties while still in the military. Here’s a breakdown using the SMART model:
- Specific: I wanted to purchase 3 homes, paid in full, no more than $250,000 each.
- Measurable: I saved 60% of my paycheck and moved to a high-paying BAH place to secure more funds. I networked and communicated with my leadership, got an assignment to Maryland, and before I knew it, I was pocketing $4,800 a month of tax-free housing allowance (married mil-to-mil helped).
- Achievable: I could reach this goal if I stuck to my 60% savings rate and made wise decisions.
- Relevant: This goal was important because it would help me retire at 41 years of age by giving me a place to live and a rental income.
- Time-bound: I had 10 years to make this happen.
As you can see, by using the SMART goal method, I could achieve my financial goal of purchasing 3 homes while still in the military.
That is no easy feat for an enlisted member. I challenge you to look and ask around your peers and leaders and ask them if they own 3 properties. Chances are they don’t!
What am I getting at?
You need to use the SMART method if you’re looking to set big or even small financial goals as a military member. This will keep you on track and give you the highest chance for success.
Tools To Help Military Families Manage SMART Goals
ClickUp
My personal favorite, the free app ClickUp is an all-in-one workspace. It helps military and family members manage work, tasks, docs, goals, and more in one place. You can also save time using ClickUp’s features to automate your workflow.
ClickUp is especially helpful when it comes to setting and achieving financial goals. You may define goals for task completions, numbers, monetary values, and other measurements and general information with ClickUp. Not only can you monitor your progress as you work, but you can also attach tasks to specific goals. This makes it simpler to stay focused and achieve what you set out to do.
You can also use ClickUp’s features to plan and manage your budget. With ClickUp, you can create a task for each expense and track your progress toward your financial goals. Additionally, you can also use ClickUp to sync up with your financial planner or military budgeting specialist to get help and advice and ensure you have enough money in your bank account for any financial situation.
Using ClickUp to manage your military finances and set SMART goals is a great way to stay on track and achieve financial success.
actiTIME
Another good one is to use actiTIME to manage your personal finances and savings goals as a military member. This website allows you to see how your time is spent and how it’s divided among activities, projects, and teams. You can also pinpoint areas where time is wasted so that projects can be completed more quickly and efficiently.
ActiTIME can help you analyze how much time you spend on each activity, which helps determine the most cost-effective method to complete specific tasks. By identifying activities that use many resources, you can adapt your project management style to be more efficient.
Use this website to keep everyone in the loop on how the project is going. And who is working on what. Promote work transparency to manage your savings goals as a military member in the most efficient way possible!
Engagedly
Last but not least of the awesome SMART goal apps is Engagedly. This is mainly focused on managing a team but can also be used for personal use. It has several excellent features, including:
- Achieve objectives: This helps you ensure that your team is aligned with the company’s goals and executing them accordingly.
- Peer praise: With this feature, you can give your team members kudos for a job well done, which helps keep morale high.
- Real-time communication: This is great for sharing updates and quickly gathering knowledge from team members.
- Surveys: Take the pulse of your team’s engagement with regular surveys.
- Gamification: With points and badges, work becomes more fun and encourages employees to stay engaged.
If you have a family and are looking for a way to manage everyone’s SMART goals, look no further than Engagedly!
FAQ
What is an army SMART goal?
An Army SMART goal is a specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound goal. This type of goal is often used in the united states department of defense to help members stay on track and achieve their objectives.
What are some financial smart goals?
Some financial SMART goals may include saving for a down payment on a house, lower living expenses, paying off debt, or investing in a retirement fund.
How can I maximize my military money?
There are a few ways to maximize your military money, but one of the most important is to set and achieve short-term goals and long-term goals. By setting SMART goals, you can better focus your efforts and stay on track. Additionally, military personnel should schedule a financial planning meeting with a financial advisor. Some other tips include: Saving money using military discounts, taking advantage of VA loans, the GI bill Roth TSP contributions, and mutual funds such as a lifecycle fund to help supplement military retirement.
What are personal goals examples?
Some personal goals for military service members and military spouses may include: growing their savings account, building an emergency fund, starting a monthly budget, paying off their credit cards, contributing to retirement savings via a thrift savings plan or Roth IRA, trying to raise your credit score, pay off student loans, find a new job or even graduate school.
What does it mean to be financially smart?
Being financially smart means making well-informed decisions about your money. This can include setting and achieving financial goals, investing in a retirement fund, or using a budgeting tool to stay within your budget.
Summary
SMART goals are the key to a successful financial future, and now that you know how to set them, there’s no stopping you! Use the tools we provided to help manage your finances and ensure you hit every milestone to reach your money dreams. Financial greatness awaits – go get it!
Related Articles:
- 22 Ways To Save Money While Enlisted (By Rank)
- How To Become A Military Millionaire (3 Simple Steps)
- How To Make Extra Money While Enlisted (16 Easy Ways)
What SMART financial goal will you set? Please tell us in the comment section below!
Hello! I'm Charles. 1st gen millionaire, real estate investor, health enthusiast, and military veteran. In the last 17 years, I have managed billions of dollars of resources for the Department of Defense. Created financial management plans that enabled fellow service members to get out of thousands of dollars in debt and tailored wellness plans that helped people reverse and eliminate high-blood pressure, pre-diabetes, and obesity. Learn more about me here.