Ask yourself two questions. Do you have a Will? And do you have written goals for the next one, three, five and ten years? If you answered yes to the first question but no to the second, you are planning more for your death than your life. I challenge you to start setting some goals but remember if a goal isn’t in writing, it’s simply a conversation. It must be in writing and it must have a deadline. You must also have a commitment to your real estate investing.  You can’t expect to do this for a few months and then give up.  Make sure you are willing to give it at least 5 years before you walk away.  Here are a few guidelines …

Be Specific

Be specific and include details but start rough. This means you want a Mercedes. You don’t have to get into color, options, etc.… just write it down. Make your list huge. Come back and prioritize and determine what you want in one, three, six and twelve months, then three, five, ten and twenty years. The more goals you have, the happier you will be, the longer you will live, and the more prosperous you will be.

Goals Must be Believable

Your goals must be believable or you will not pay the price. They must be just out of your reach, but know you can reach them, if you really strive to do it.

Goals Must be Measurable

Don’t set a goal to be financially independent. You can’t measure that. Break it down to the ridiculous. I have learned that successful people set their goals quickly and make adjustments as they go along. Successful people don’t vacillate in indecision.

Goals Must be Congruent

Goals must be congruent with your actions. You cannot set a goal to work harder, longer hours AND a goal to spend more time with your family. Those are not congruent.

Visualize What You Want

If you see yourself as already having achieved the goal, you will fake out your mind and it sees the goal as having been achieved. It’s called “fake it till you make it”. Take a moment each day and visualize life as it is would be with your goals already accomplished.

Number Your Goals

Number your goals in the order of importance. Not only is the goal important but so is the reason. Sure your want more money, but why do you want money? Whatever it is, the reason must be there. The reason is more important than the goal itself.

Review, Monitor and Make Adjustments

Review, monitor and make adjustments to your goals. You have to be flexible. Some things are not going to happen, you have to face that but you need to continuously strive to get better every day.

Goals Must Have a Deadline

Your goals must have a deadline. A goal without a deadline is just a conversation. Set your goals in these four basic areas:

Financial

Set goals based on income, equity or net worth and cash flow. All of these are financial goals.

Fitness

This is your health. If you don’t feel good, you are not working at your maximum capacity. I want you to set some fitness goals to stay healthy. Start small and don’t try to tackle all of them at.

Family

Set family goals. What is an example of a family goal? Maybe you want to take four vacations a year. Maybe you want to visit a new state, three times a year or five times a year. You get the point.

Friends

Think about the people you associate with. Your ten closest friend’s annual salary and divide by ten…that is pretty close to your income. Who you associate with, is who you are like, so keep that in mind. Don’t get rid of your friends, just get more that are where YOU want to be financially.

Remember, real estate investing is a great way to help you achieve your goals, you have to have desire and commitment.  The time for action is now and its never to late to DO SOMETHING!