A proven way to property investing success is to set yourself some clear and measurable goals.
So, whether you are an experienced property investor or new to the game, these tips will help you set your long term goals and ensure you do not lose sight of them until they have been achieved.
Why have goals?
Setting SMART goals will help give you a long term vision to work towards and the short term determination and drive that you will need to get there.
Clearly defined goals which you can measure will help you monitor your progress, raise your confidence and recognise your achievements.
1. Set SMART Goals
A useful way of making goals more powerful is to make them SMART, which stands for:
S – Specific
M – Measurable
A – Attainable
R – Relevant
T – Time-bound
An example of a SMART goal is: “To have added at least one property to my portfolio by a certain date, which I will purchase at a price at least 10 percent below the fair market value.”
Make sure with every SMART goal you set, you have a clear and convincing answer of why you want to achieve it. This answer can be your anchor, motivation and help you stay on track if and when things become difficult.
When you set this answer, make sure you then realise the benefits and outcomes that you can achieve when you tick off the goals.
For example if you achieve the example goal stated above, it can bring you many more ancillary benefits, including creating instant equity to help fund future additions to your portfolio, potential future capital gains, helping you to create long term and sustainable wealth.
2. State each goal as a positive statement
Remaining positive about your property investing goals will help keep you motivated towards achieving them.
For example:
- Having a goal of optimising my portfolio successfully by a set date
- Reviewing rents with my tenants and or property manager
- Meeting my lender to discuss my current interest rates to see whether I can obtain a better rate or get a loan review with a mortgage broker
3. Write down your goals
There is plenty of research which shows that writing down your goals will increase your chances of achieving them.
It will force you to be clear about what you want, motivate you to act and prevent you from thinking about the possible stumbling blocks on the road ahead.
Place your written goals somewhere prominent – as reading them regularly will help to positively reinforce your convictions.
If the goal is unspecific and hard to measure, make sure to break it down into smaller, incremental goals which can be measured easily.
For example these four incremental goals are all measurable and can combine to help you achieve a major goal by the end of the financial year:
- I will spend 30 minutes per day searching for positive cash flow properties
- I will spend 30 minutes per day checking the property and suburb fundamentals
- I will make a short list of properties that meet my buying rules and criteria
- I will organise a financial health check and get finance pre-approval organised by a set date
4. Create a checklist and track your progress
A checklist will help you keep track of what needs to be done, allows you to tick off items as you complete them, and allows you to see how they contribute to your goals. The checklist you make should contain steps to achieve the goal.
Whether this is what you need to do, what you need to think about or what you need to learn to achieve it.
Again, to be most effective you should add a completion date to each list item, if applicable. The more detailed your checklist the better, as it will help you stay focused on what needs to be completed before starting the next task.
There are loads of free goal tracking apps that you can get to help with this. In fact, make it a goal to download one of them today!
5. Be prepared to change some habits
One reason that people fail to achieve their goals, is that they do not recognise the need to change some ingrained habits that have the potential to sabotage them.
For instance if one of your goals is to purchase a positively geared property by a certain date and you do not have accurate analysis tools to help you work out the long term cash flow position of the property in question, you are increasing your risk of failure.
I doubt there are any property investors who have had a completely smooth run and become successful. So, welcome each setback, learn from it and apply those lessons to the next goal you want to achieve.
6. Discuss your goals with family or friends
Telling someone else about your goals and regularly updating them will help to keep you focused.
Giving weekly updates keeps you committed and increases accountability, and you will also have the benefit of receiving honest feedback from people whose opinions matter to you.
It can be a family member or a friend and as long as they are supportive and willing to provide practical advice, you will increase your chances of accomplishing your goals.
7. Celebrate your achievements
Positive reinforcement is a good habit to have.
Reward yourself when you achieve a goal or have made significant progress on your checklist.
This will help reinforce your commitment and give an even bigger sense of accomplishment. When you have achieved a goal, review the rest of your goals to learn from the experience.
Questions to ask yourself include:
- If you achieved the goal too easily, adjust the next ones to make them more challenging.
- If you learned something from achieving this goal that could lead you to change other goals, do so.
- If you noticed that you have skill or knowledge gaps despite achieving the goal, set goals to address this.
8. Take advantage of resources
There are loads of resources, information and data that can help you fulfil your property investing goals. For example, there are countless books, websites, podcasts and educators that you can learn from.
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