Foundations · Module 4 of 6
A number and a date
Turn “I should save more” into a clear goal with a number and a date, and decide which goal comes first.
Key terms in A number and a date
- Financial goal
A financial goal is the money side of something a person wants to achieve in life. Since most aims, from a trip to a degree, cost money, each one carries a financial counterpart. Writing it down turns a vague wish into something concrete that can be sized, scheduled and tracked.
- SMART goal
A SMART goal is an objective written to meet five tests. It must be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. The acronym is widely used in education and workplace planning, and consumer finance agencies apply it to money targets so that progress can be checked against a clear number and a clear deadline.
Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Setting SMART goals
- Short-term goal
A short-term goal is a financial aim expected to be reached within a brief span, such as by the end of the month or within a few months. It contrasts with a long-term goal, which stretches further into the future. The FDIC describes a savings goal as naming what is wanted, the amount needed, and a target date, which gives a goal a time frame.
Source: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Chapter 2: Goals and Saving
Every term on Lever is in the money glossary.
About this module
A number and a date is part of Foundations, one of 15 subjects in Lever. It’s a short run of 5 lessons, about 13 minutes in all, so you can finish it in one sitting.
Every lesson takes one idea at a time. You read it with the math worked out step by step, answer a question that puts it to use, then see why the right answer is right and why the others aren’t.
It’s for anyone who was never taught this, and you don’t need to know anything first. Every lesson is free. Lever works out what you already know, so you can start here or let your path bring you to it.
More in Foundations
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1
What money actually is
Why money exists at all, the jobs it does for you, and why every price is written in the same currency.
6 lessons -
2
The numbers underneath
Percentages, interest that grows on itself, and the cost of choosing one thing over another. The three ideas everything else leans on.
8 lessons -
3
What keeps money working
Why paper money still buys groceries, and the trust that keeps the whole system running.
5 lessons -
5
Now versus later
Why money today is worth more than money next year, and how to weigh a choice before you make it.
5 lessons -
6
The shape of growth
How long money takes to double, and why small amounts added every month grow faster than you’d think.
5 lessons
Try this module
It’s part of Foundations. Lever will bring it to you when you’re ready, or you can go straight there.