If this is your first time visiting Centsability to Wealth you may want to see what we are about , read about me, or read our introductory post.

This is a guest post from loyal CTW reader, Nate.  He has been a part of the community here since our very first post and I often discuss financial issues with him outside of Centsability to Wealth.  When he told me he had a guest post to contribute, I was excited, and he did not disappoint.  The following story is all his.  My comments will follow in this color font.

As a long time reader of CTW, I’ve thought a lot about contributing a guest post.  A recent developement in my own life provided me the perfect opportunity for one.  Without divulging too much into my own finances, let me say that  I am employed, making enough in a month to pay every bill I have, and am planning on moving to Egypt this fall.  I graduated from The Ohio State University in December with a degree in Political Science.
 
Now, how is this all relevant, you might ask?  Well, a move to the other side of the planet is not exactly a cheap endeavor.  I certainly don’t want to be broke in Egypt, and while I have plans to aide me in finding work, nothing is guaranteed.  This brings me to the moral of today’s story: goal oriented saving.
 
I know how much money I need to be able to live for a certain amount of time in Egypt.  I know how much I’ll have to save.  I like Josh’s boat metaphor, so we’re going to run with it.  I know my destination.  I have a financial goal that, once it is achieved, will enable me to do something (in this case, move to Africa). 
 
It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to simply sail this ship with no direction.  No one (except my girl friend, whose sanity I frequently question!) wants to simply float around the planet on a boat, never docking.  I want to stop in all the cool port cities along the way.  Sydney.  Alexandria.  NYC.  Amsterdam.  Seattle.  Obviously, the entire journey is BIGGER than those cities themselves, but that’s the goal while sailing.
 
So, we need to put destinations or goals in our financial plans.  Remember Josh’s story about his motorcycle?  That is the perfect example of why you need goal oriented savings.  If Josh had planned to get a bike as a destination rather than an impulse purchase on credit, he would have evaded the worst financial decision he’s ever made.  Perhaps your goal is a brand new HDTV?  Set a goal for what you want (and when you want it), and then find a way to save extra money every month to achieve it.  So you want that $600 TV.  Set a goal to save $100 a month for six months.  Make it achievable. 
 
In the mean time, take the time and do the work to make sure you’re getting the most out of your goal that you possibly can.  Research televisions.  Figure out how a bike will work out for you.  Learn about the costs of living in Egypt, and the job prospects.  Read reviews, learn from others, read forums.  This makes it even more worthwhile to achieve the goal, and ensures that you’re making an informed purchase.
 
Saving money towards a goal not only lets you see short-term fruits of your saving labor, but keeps you from going into debt.  While credit-cards are O.K. when used wisely, why pay the extra interest? This gives you a destination for your boat, and allows you time to prepare for what you want to see (research your product) when you dock.  Before I go to Egypt, I will have scoured every nook and cranny of the internet in order to find out all I can about my career path there, housing, utilities, food costs, what I want to do while I’m there, etc.  You should do that as well with your goal.  Otherwise, you end up lost and not always making the best decision for your dollars.

I love this.  I feel like too often I focus on just the money aspect of personal finance.  While money is important, it is not most important.  It is simply a means to an end.  We’ve all heard the phrase “money can’t buy you happiness”, and it is certainly true.  But by setting goals, like Nate is with his journey to Egypt, you can use money to buy things that do make you happy, without ruining your financial life.  I wish Nate the best of luck on his adventures ahead and hopefully he will keep us updated when he is living across the planet.  He could share some great stories about the financial situations over there.

I would love to have more guest posts in the future.  Not only do they give me a break from writing, they give you guys a chance to hear things from a different voice and different point of view.  If you have an idea of a guest post you would like to post on Centsability to Wealth, I would like to hear it.  It can be anything that is related to personal finance in any possible way.  Send any proposals to centsabilitytowealth@gmail.com.

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