<p>It was a chilly February morning. As usual, I budgeted just enough time to get out the door and make it to my destination. Leaving at the last moment possible, I jumped into our old truck. I crammed the supplies I needed to teach a coupon class into the passenger seat and fired up the engine, preparing to depart.</p><p>We live on a busy street where traffic flows by in a constant blur. As a result, before anyone leaves, every member of our household proclaims, “Turn around in the driveway! Don’t try to back out in the street.” We love our front yard, but we care more about our friends and neighbors safely making it down the road.</p><p>I followed my own “Turn around in the driveway!” advice and prepared to do a three point turn. Even though I’d driven the truck many times, I wasn’t prepared for what happened next. Thanks to the recent falling and subsequent melting of snow, the ground in our yard was soft especially by winter’s standards. The tires of the truck hit the edge of the grass just adjacent to the asphalt. When I threw the gear and tried to move forward, nothing happened.</p><p>I was stuck.</p><p>It’s probably happened to you, too. Even if you’ve never been physically stuck in your own front yard, it can be easy to feel bogged down particularly with your financial goals.</p><p>If you’re feeling weary and looking for a reboot, you’re not alone. We all find ourselves overwhelmed and uncertain, feeling like things will never change. Getting un-stuck may be easier said than done, but using these methods can help you revitalize your goals and look toward the future.</p><p><span>Retrace your steps</span></p><p>One of the first things I do when I’ve lost something is to retrace my steps. When you’ve lost your way financially, it’s important to remember how far you’ve already come. It’s easy to become frustrated and lose our gratitude when we don’t.</p><p>It may seem elementary, but if you have a job, that’s a financial victory. If you paid the light bill this month, it’s something to be celebrated. Earning a degree, making a major purchase with cash, having food on the table — retrace steps like these.</p><p>Sitting down with a pen and a paper to remember where you’ve been and what you’ve come through already leads you to your next steps.</p><p><span>Reframe your goals</span></p><p>Often, we can feel weary and dejected in our money goals. However, it could be that we’ve been aiming at the wrong target all along. Rather than being disheartened, recall what it was you really wanted to do.</p><p>Any goal should be CAT (my apologies to the dog people in the audience). C stands for clear. Your goal needs to be specific as possible. Do you know how much debt you have? What kind of debt is it?</p><p>Your goals also need actions, the A in our short acronym. This is the how to your what. “I want to pay off $2,376 in credit card debt” is a clear goal. To take things to the next level, we institute the methods we’ll use to achieve it, whether it’s taking on a second job or selling items you already own.</p><p>With any goal, time (yes, that’s the T to our C-A-T) rounds out the strategy. You need to aim toward a finish line. Be realistic when setting a target date.</p><p>We set our goal of paying off all of our consumer debt in the 15 year range. We arrived at this number after evaluating our current income and needs. We knew if we hustled and dramatically scaled back our lifestyle, the years could shrink. The good news for us is that we crossed the finish line in just four years. Your time limit can come in sooner than you planned, but having a deadline in the distance will help you to stick to your goals when the going gets tough.</p><p><span>Measure your success</span></p><p>If you haven’t already, you need to create a mechanism to measure your success. This may be as simple as creating a paper thermometer to color in as you pay off increments of debt or reach other savings goals. An app such as Strides, Habit List, or Momentum can help you monitor your progress.</p><p>Another great way to propel your goals toward completion is by setting a micro goal within a bigger aim. Your goal may be to pay off $2,376 in credit card debt by working an extra job and reducing your dining out budget in six month’s time. But it might be wise to set a smaller goal within that one and then celebrate once you achieve the first step.</p><p><span>Ask for help</span></p><p>I would have remained stuck in my driveway if it weren’t for the help of two people. My friend Lucy came and picked me up to take me to the coupon class. And a kind stranger stopped later in the day to help pull our truck out from the muck and mire.</p><p>We all need help in achieving our goals, especially when we feel stuck. While you may not have Lucy or someone with a winch to help your current money situation, you can call upon the help of people you know and maybe even someone you don’t know for assistance.</p><p>Head to the library to check out books. Research podcasts. Sign up for a class. Or simply arrange to meet with a friend once a week to check in your progress.</p><p>Sometimes we become stuck because our strategies aren’t working or we don’t know what we don’t know. Asking for help always moves us in the right direction.</p><p>Our truck isn’t stuck in the yard anymore. You won’t be stuck forever either. Take a deep breath and renew your journey with clearer and focused goals.</p>
