2020 Goals have been set

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Well it’s that time again to start to put the list of goals together. 2019 was better than i would of expected however when you focus on your goals set out and review them often you have a much better chance of them being achieved.

There is a lot of talk around a market crash coming as most of you have probably heard, so my family and I will be monitoring certain metrics and ensuring any stocks purchased are very solid companies who we can see 20 years from now. It’s also important to note we will be focusing on those companies who also don’t typically cut their dividend in a recession and in some cases continue to increase throughout the years.

You will notice that the list may be different then what you have seen elsewhere. We try to ensure that we are not only adding financial goals but also family goals. We feel this is very important as “why not” have fun while shooting for your financial goals. I would highly encourage all of you to put your goals either on your website or even just on a piece of paper and look at it every few weeks, this will give you the opportunity to ask yourself “What I have done so far this year, will this get me to this goal?”. If the answer is no “What can i do differently to change that?”. Push yourself to think outside the box and make it happen.

So without further to do here’s our 2020 goals that we want to hurdle

Increase my personal TFSA by $6,000

• For simple math this would be a $500 contribution per month

Increase Maria’s TFSA by $7,000

• This will take about a $580 contribution per month
• Maria’s still has room within her TFSA to contribute more than the 2019 TFSA limit of $6,000, in order to get it maxed out we will need to continue the increases in this account

Redo the deck steps

• When we built our deck I took it upon myself to put the steps together and well they kinda fell apart. So I have a friend coming buy to help me out.

Install Lattice on the deck

• This is more of a privacy wall and a place we can hang towels while enjoying the hot tub.

Plant remaining tree’s and shrubs

• A few years ago we had our back yard designed. I’d say were now about 60% complete on the design and each year we set a certain amount aside to complete different stages. As we are in a new neighbourhood we’d like to ensure all plants are in so they grow somewhat at the same time.

Pay no interest on any credit card

• We have a pretty good streak going and we’d like to continue not putting our money in other people’s pockets.
• We have completed this in the past by making 2 payments each month and by paying off the total amount owing each time.

Complete deck siding

• We spend many hours during the summer in the back yard so we want to ensure it looks good.
• There is one side of the deck remaining.

Increase RRSP by $7,000

• The company i work for has increased the matching program slightly in 2020.
• I don’t want to leave any money on the table so we will ensure we max it out to the cap.
• This is an increase over 2019 goal that was accomplished

Beat the TSX

• What’s the point of managing your own portfolio if you can’t beat the market they say.
• Last year we out performed the market by 11%

Take a family trip to Kelowna

• My sister is getting married down there so we figured we’d extend our stay a few extra days, I mean were talking about Kelowna here……

Fund the kids RESP by $5,000

• This one is very important to Maria and I as we want to ensure our kids have some options later in life. Personally telling your kids I’m sorry that’s just not an option would be a tough conversation, so as long as we’re able we will do our part
• The government also kicks in 20%

Frame basement

• We would like to get the ball rolling on this one. We feel as the kids get older they may like to set up down there

Receive $3,100 in dividends

• Last year we received just over $2,500
• In order to hit our goal a few things need to happen. We need to contribute the amounts specified with this post, have none or very little dividend cuts and we need some increases from the companies we currently hold

Reduce Tim Horton bill by at least half

• Many people know the feeling. In 2019 I would purchase one coffee every morning and an ice cap on the way home. This habit has been going on for at least 5 years and i didnt even mention weekend stops and afternoon coffees on the way to meetings
• As we continue to raise the bar on the goal list I’d like to reduce this plus all that coffee probably isn’t good for me

Reduce debt to asset from 52% to 48%

• The best way to attack this is to increase your asset line and decrease your current debt, by doing both at the same time it helps lower your number quicker

Help a family in need

• When I was a child a family had helped us through the christmas holiday by ensuring we had a meal and some presents under the tree. I said to myself as I got older and fully understood the situation that I would pay it forward one day. Well that day is coming

Increase net worth by $65,000

• Last year the market was on fire and really helped us achieve 2019 goal
• We will focus on increasing income streams, a couple extra payments on the house and by frugal spending

Maria to take a trip to phoenix

• Maria has made it a focus to continue success within her home base business and this company allows her to go different places. This year that place is Phoenix.

Receive a minimum of $1000 from cash back on credit card

• Last year we blasted through $700 like it was nothing and set another goal half way through the year. This year as we focus on a few different things I feel like $1,000 is an appropriate goal

Read a minimum of 6 books

• If your like me you may not read enough as you should so 6 books for the year seems reasonable.
• Currently I listen to many podcasts that have really increased my knowledge, kept me up to speed on current conditions of the market and what’s going on in the world.

It is a pretty large list this year however we like to raise the bar and push ourselves. We have had some recent success at accomplishing past year goals and we have been asked on how we continue to do so, so we decided to compile a list of the top 5 tips when setting goals which will be out within the next couple weeks.

Thanks for reading and please share your thoughts!

Invest in yourself

Brian