Featured in...
Dashboard
Guides
Debt Info

Financial Goals Roadmap – Free Spreadsheet Download

Scott Nelson Profile Picture Janine Marsh Profile Picture
By
Scott
Scott Nelson Profile Picture

Scott Nelson

Managing Director

MoneyNerd’s founder, Scott Nelson, has a decade of financial industry experience, including 6 years in FCA regulated loan and credit card companies. Troubled by a lack of conscience in the industry, he founded MoneyNerd to give genuine advice to those in debt and struggling financially.

Learn more about Scott
&
Janine
Janine Marsh Profile Picture

Janine Marsh

Financial Expert

Janine Marsh is an award-winning presenter and a valuable member of the MoneyNerd team. With a wealth of experience as a financial expert, she's been featured on BBC Radio 4, BBC Local Radio, and BBC Five Live, and is a regular on Co-op Radio.

Learn more about Janine
· Feb 6th, 2024
Could you legally write off some debt? Answer below to get started.

Total amount of debt?

For free & impartial money advice you can visit MoneyHelper. We work with The Debt Advice Service who provide information about your options. This isn’t a full fact-find, some debt solutions may not be suitable in all circumstances, ongoing fees might apply & your credit rating may be affected.

For free & impartial money advice you can visit MoneyHelper. We work with The Debt Advice Service who provide information about your options. This isn’t a full fact-find, some debt solutions may not be suitable in all circumstances, ongoing fees might apply & your credit rating may be affected.

Featured in...
Financial Goals Roadmap

For free & impartial money advice you can visit MoneyHelper. We work with The Debt Advice Service who provide information about your options. This isn’t a full fact-find, some debt solutions may not be suitable in all circumstances, ongoing fees might apply & your credit rating may be affected.

Making financial goals isn’t just about the overall target. You are more likely to achieve your long-term financial goals by breaking them down and creating a financial goals roadmap. 

Discover more on this subject below – and don’t forget to download my 100% free financial goals roadmap resource. It’ll help you save better and quicker!

Financial Goals Spreadsheet
Could you legally write off some debt?

There are several debt solutions in the UK, choosing the right one for you could write off some of your unaffordable debt, but the wrong one may be expensive and drawn out.

Answer below to get started.

How much debt do you have?

This isn’t a full fact find. MoneyNerd doesn’t give advice. We work with The Debt Advice Service who provide information about your options.

What Are Financial Goals?

A financial goal is an aim to improve your finances in a specific way. Most financial goals revolve around saving a set amount of money by a certain deadline. These can be put into different categories, such as saving for a holiday or saving for a new kitchen. 

But there are many other financial goal targets, such as clearing debt, paying off a car or improving your credit score. 

Should Everyone Have Financial Goals?

Financial goals are important for everyone. They can help you set out a life path and prioritise different purchases or experiences. Having financial goals also instills a sense of discipline and accountability. They can be really useful for younger people just learning how to budget.

Financial goals are also beneficial to people in debt. If your financial goal is to get out of debt, you can break down the challenge into smaller goals to help you stay motivated and focused. It will also ease any stress and anxiety if you can see a clear pathway out of debt. 

How a debt solution could help

Some debt solutions can:

  1. Stop nasty calls from creditors
  2. Freeze interest and charges
  3. Reduce your monthly payments

A few debt solutions can even result in writing off some of your debt.

Here’s an example:


Situation

Monthly income £2,504
Monthly expenses £2,345
Total debt £32,049

Monthly debt repayments

Before £587
After £158

£429 reduction in monthly payments

If you want to learn what debt solutions are available to you, click the button below to get started.

Get Started

How Can I Make Financial Goals?

Your financial goals should be realistic. Don’t make unachievable goals, or you will lose motivation quickly and give up. Some people make goals by writing them down, but you can do even better than that…

You can use a financial goals roadmap. 

This is not just about writing down a goal you want to achieve but breaking down long-term goals into smaller targets each month. You can then record if you hit, miss or exceed these smaller targets on your journey to your overarching finance goal. 

What are SMART goals?

You might have heard of SMART goals in your professional life, but do they work for finances? The answer is yes.

For a goal to be SMART, it must be:

  • Specific: You must know exactly what your goal is and it shouldn’t be vague
  • Measurable: You should know what meeting or surpassing your goal will look like
  • Achievable: There’s no point setting yourself up for failure! Choose goals that you have a chance of achieving
  • Relevant: Your financial goals must be relevant or connected to your finances
  • Time-bound: Give yourself a deadline, or you’ll be promising to ‘start it tomorrow’ for ages!

Take a look at this example.

This forum user’s goals are:

  • Specific: Specific targets for specific savings pots
  • Measurable: They’ll know if they’ve hit their targets by looking at their balance
  • Achievable: The savings amount is probably realistic compared to their income
  • Relevant: In the quest for financial health, you might need to have money earmarked for different things
  • Time-bound: They’ve set monthly deadlines for their targets.

So, these are SMART goals and this forum user will probably find it easier to stick to them and be motivated to maintain healthy spending and saving habits.

Financial Goals Roadmap Vs Tracker Resources

Don’t confuse a financial goals roadmap with a financial tracker. The two do similar things but they are not exactly the same. A financial goals roadmap documents goals in advance each month, and then it is up to you to hit them. On the other hand, a financial tracker resource records your finances as you go, including bills, debt payments, savings and more. 

But don’t worry if you want free debt payment trackers or other tracker resources – I have those free to download as well!

Try My Financial Goals Roadmap, Today!

MoneyNerd is offering you the chance to download a readymade financial goal roadmap. I have already created a simple yet effective template to track your goals over a year. 

You can change the colour of your smaller goals if you hit or miss them, to help you stay on track across the board, prioritise goals and stay motivated. 

Download it for free now! Click the button below.

Thousands have already tackled their debt

Every day our partners, The Debt Advice Service, help people find out whether they can lower their repayments and finally tackle or write off some of their debt.

Natasha

I’d recommend this firm to anyone struggling with debt – my mind has been put to rest, all is getting sorted.

Get started

Reviews shown are for The Debt Advice Service.

Where Can I Get Free Advice?

If you are struggling to manage your money, I recommend speaking to a debt charity.

There are several charities and organisations in the UK that offer free debt counselling services and free financial advice. Their advisors will be able to walk you through your options and find the best solution for you.

The new debt breathing space scheme

Everyone has to start somewhere. With your finances, this might mean starting off in a bad way.

You might be worried about possible debt collection while you try to find a solution. You could benefit from the Debt Respite Scheme (Breathing Space) from the government.

The Breathing Space scheme gives you a moment to get some advice or even start a debt solution. It started in May 2021 and gives you 60 days of no added fees, added interest, or enforcement action once you have passed the eligibility checks.

There are two types of breathing space that you can apply for:

  • A standard breathing space: available for anyone with debt problems. It lasts for 60 days.
  • A mental health crisis breathing space: available to those who are receiving mental health crisis treatment. It lasts for however long treatment takes, plus 30 days.
Could you legally write off some debt?

Answer below to get started.

How much debt do you have?

This isn’t a full fact find. MoneyNerd doesn’t give advice. We work with The Debt Advice Service who provide information about your options.

Did you like this article?
Show your support ❤️
We're glad you liked the article! As a small team, your support means everything to us. If you could rate us on Google, it would be amazing. Thank you!
We are so sorry...

Is there something missing? We’re all ears and eager to improve. Send us a message and let us know how we can make our article more useful for you.

You can email us directly at [email protected] to share your feedback.

The authors
Scott Nelson Profile Picture
Author
MoneyNerd’s founder, Scott Nelson, has a decade of financial industry experience, including 6 years in FCA regulated loan and credit card companies. Troubled by a lack of conscience in the industry, he founded MoneyNerd to give genuine advice to those in debt and struggling financially.
Janine Marsh Profile Picture
Debt Expert
Janine Marsh is an award-winning presenter and a valuable member of the MoneyNerd team. With a wealth of experience as a financial expert, she's been featured on BBC Radio 4, BBC Local Radio, and BBC Five Live, and is a regular on Co-op Radio.