Setting + Hitting Your Financial Goals with ADHD
The world of financial goals with ADHD can feel like trying to juggle jello (is that even a saying? 😆)! Fear not; with the right strategies that take advantage of the things that can hold our interest, we can turn those financial dreams into reality. So grab a seat, buckle up, and let's dive into the wild world of ADHD-friendly financial goal setting.
Let’s examine how we can harness the power of our motivations—novelty, challenge, passion, urgency, and interest—to conquer our financial goals like the heroes we are.
✨ Create Novelty in Your Financial Journey
Who says budgeting has to be boring? If you’re new to budgeting or in a rut, we can embrace the power of novelty by injecting some excitement into your financial routine. Here are a few suggestions:
Look for a money-tracking app or checkout features that track your spending in any current banking app. Sometimes going down the rabbit hole of finding that new and shiny thing can ignite (or re-ignite) our focus.
Check out different spreadsheet options to create your plan and track your spending.
If you’re looking for something new to get motivated, I recommend you set a budget for yourself so you don’t get yourself off track with your search for novelty. There are many free options available, so you can go on this side quest with a budget of $0! Maybe work in a little reward for yourself when you stay on budget.
💪🏻 Make the Challenge Motivator Work for You
We thrive on challenges – they're what keep us engaged and motivated. Finding ways to keep yourself challenged is a game-changer! Whether it's tackling a hefty debt load, mastering the art of saving, or starting your own business, think about how you can level up the challenge level!
My top recommendation for this is to create stretch goals for yourself. Here is an example of how to do that if you have a savings goal. Let’s say you look at your income and expenses, and it looks like you’ll be able to save $500 in the next four weeks. Creating different levels for you goal, you can keep yourself challenged.
Good Goal - $500 in 4 weeks
Better Goal - $600 in 4 weeks OR $500 in 3 weeks
Best Goal - $700 in 4 weeks or $500 in 2 weeks
Each level gets more challenging and having different difficulty levels for you goal can keep you motivated to keep going even when your good goal is achieved or really close.
Your Good Goal should be achievable if you stick to your plan; the Better Goal needs a few things to fall in your favour to hit, and the Best Goal should have you scratching your head, thinking that you have no idea how you would achieve it.
♥️ Pursue Your Financial Passion Projects
Passion is the fuel that powers our ADHD brains, so why not harness that energy to fuel your financial goals? Take some time to identify what truly lights a fire in you and think about how hitting your financial goals will help you get there. Maybe you want to pivot a side hustle into your full-time gig, take an extended backpacking trip, or retire before you’re old and grey. Making shifts with your money can pave the path to many of the things you want in your life.
🚨 Creating Urgency in Your Actions
We thrive on urgency – it's what keeps us on our toes and prevents us from getting bored. How can you use that to your advantage when it comes to your financial goals? Instead of putting off important money decisions, set deadlines to all the different actions you want to take and find a way to create accountability to those deadlines. We often let ourselves down when it comes to hitting deadlines, so think about how you can create accountability for yourself and your deadlines. A few options are sharing them with others, putting them out there to social media land, or partnering up with a friend or loved on to meet regularly to talk bout your goals and your deadlines.
🧐 Follow Your Financial Interests
Whether you're passionate about travel, technology, or tacos, align your financial goals with your interests. This could come in the form of rewards for hitting your goals and taking the actions that help you get to them. But it can also come from setting your goals to help invest in experiences that bring you joy, support causes that matter to you and indulge in the things that make life worth living. When you're pursuing financial goals that align with your interests, staying focused and motivated becomes effortless.
By leaning into creating novelty, challenge, passion, urgency, and interest with your goal, we can use our unique brains to help us knock down our goals one by one!
But you don’t have to go at it alone! If you are feeling overwhelmed with where to start and know you need accountability in your life, maybe it’s time to consider financial coaching. 🤑 I’d love to connect with you and learn about your goals and how I can help. I offer a free consultation and you can also learn more about me by finding me on Instagram!
