Goals That Grow With You: Building Financial Milestones for Success - Samantha Eck

Website: https://firestormfinance.com/

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@firestormfinance?hl=en 

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-e-8796b6176/

00:01 Hello, hello and welcome to Goals that Grow with You. This presentation is all about setting intentional financial goals that will not only grow with your business but help you to grow your business. So let's really get into it and dive into this presentation so that we can grow your business together. First of all, hi, I'm Samantha. I'm a bookkeeper for creatives who focuses on helping them read the story their numbers are trying to tell them. But I don't just focus on numbers i really love to connect your goals to your numbers so that you can use them to grow your business to new heights. 

00:43 Setting goals is one of the biggest things that I help my clients do and now of course, I'm here to help you. So let's dive right in. First of all, we want to ask ourselves when learning from any presentation, what are we looking to gain from this? So while you're watching this presentation and going through it, I really want you to keep this question at the back of your mind. Where do you want to be financially at the end of next year? And what can you start doing right now to make sure you get there? Because this presentation is going to change the way that you think about your business finances. 

01:19 And so I want you to be thinking about this question consistently. First of all, what are goals? So the textbook definition of goals is that the end which towards effort is directed. But we want to ask ourselves, why do they matter? Now, first of all, let me explain i used to be a goal naysayer. I'd see everyone setting goals every year and being like, oh, goals are the best thing for my business and think why on earth would they do that like, what is the point of actually setting a goal? But when I finally started setting goals for my own business, I quickly realized the power that they hold. When you have something specific to work towards, you're far more likely to achieve it than just drifting aimlessly all over the place. 

02:07 And it might sound silly, but when you have something that you're reaching for, you really do push to make that extra effort. Of course, I want to share a story from my own personal experience. Very early in my business, I really didn't bother with setting goals. I was just winging it, hoping that hard work alone would get me results. I thought that if I stayed busy and did all the right things, successful just come to me. But the problem was that without a clear direction, I kind of just ended up taking on random projects, saying yes to clients who didn't fully align with my vision, and feeling like I was spinning in circles. 

02:46 By the end of the year, I was really exhausted and frustrated because I'd worked so hard, but my business hadn't grown in any sort of meaningful way and I didn't really know what went wrong. The next year, I decided to try something very different. I set a very clear revenue goal, expense goal and profit goal and came away with something specific and achievable. And I made a personal commitment to stop accepting work that didn't align with my values or my long term vision. And everything changed. 

03:21 With a clear goal in place, decision making became easier. Every time an opportunity came up, I asked myself, does this move me closer to my goal or does it take me off track? I focused on the right clients, tracked my progress monthly, and I hit my revenue goal in three months ahead of schedule. For the first time, I really felt in control of my business. The truth is, it all comes down to your mindset. Without a goal, there's no clear destination and we tend to stay stuck or take really scattered steps. But when we set clear, intentional goals, we gain clarity and direction that motivates us to make meaningful progress. 

04:01 The same applies to financial goals. If we want to reach our desired outcomes, we need to clearly define those goals. Whether it's daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly targets, financial goals will act as a compass to guide your decisions and help you move forward with intentionality. Goals don't just give us something to aim for. They provide purpose, direction, and momentum to know where we're headed. 

04:26 Now I want to address some common fears with goals. You're probably thinking, this sounds great, but what if I don't set a goal? Or what if I set a goal and don't reach it? What if I fail again? What if it's just another thing I can't follow through on? But I want you to flip the switch on that and turn all those what ifs into opportunities. Because what if setting a goal helps you uncover the one thing that could shift everything? What if tracking your progress gives you the clarity and strategy that you've been missing? Goals aren't about perfection, they're about progress. 

05:03 And even if you don't hit the mark right away, having a target just allows you to learn, pivot, and grow. And that's where your real success begins. So let's take a moment to address some of your common fears about setting and focusing on goals. The first one I hear all the time is I'll only see my failures. First of all, goals are not about shaming yourself or feeling bad. 

05:27 They are a tool to show you both where you can improve and where you've succeeded. Even small wins are worth celebrating and recognizing them can help to fuel your future growth. If something didn't go as planned, it's not a failure, it's a learning opportunity. You can adjust and turn those shortfalls or successes in the future. They don't matter in the long run, but they absolutely do. Based on the personal story I just told you and everything I'm going to talk to you about today. Goals provide visibility into your patterns and progress. If you set a goal to make ten thousand dollars a month and consistently fall short, you won't just ignore it. 

06:10 You'll analyze what's driving the results and identify what needs to change. Goals give you the insights that help you course correct instead of drifting aimlessly. The last one is that goals don't actually help me run my business. In reality, they do. Goals aren't just arbitrary numbers, they're part of a strategy. And that is the key there is the strategy because missing a goal doesn't mean a failure. 

06:36 Again, it's a chance to dig deeper and understand why you missed it. Maybe you didn't hit your ten thousand dollar revenue goal this month, but understanding the reason behind it can help you make the necessary adjustments. Again, those goals highlight areas for growth and improvement, enabling you to make intentional, strategic decisions that help to move your business forward. 

07:00 Now that we know what goals are and we've addressed our fears about them, we can finally focus on setting them. So what are the specific goals that we want to set? Well, the first one is pretty obvious. It's revenue. It's the total amount of money brought in. This means how much do you want to bring in before any expenses are deducted? Setting a revenue goal is essential because it brings clarity, focus and direction to your business. It turns the vague idea making more money into specific, measurable targets you can track and take action on. With a clear goal, you can break it down into monthly or quarterly milestones, making it easier to plan your next steps, whether that's increasing sales, raising prices or improving client retention. 

07:48 Revenue goals also help you prioritize important decisions, such as when to invest in marketing or when to hire additional help, because every choice then supports your financial vision beyond just numbers. Setting a goal connects your business to your personal aspirations, like having more time with family and achieving financial Peace of Mind. Now, I want to remind you that revenue is your top line number. 

08:11 So when you see all those bold claims out there from coaches or other business owners who are saying, hey, I brought in six figures, I have ten thousand dollars i, want to remind you that they're only showing you one side of the process. They could be bringing home literal pennies and you wouldn't know because all of they're showing you is that they're making that ten thousand dollars in revenue. O it's imortant yes, to set a revenue goal, but revenue should not be your priority. 

08:39 Your priority should be profit, and we're going to get into that in a second. The next goal that I want you to focus on setting is an expense goal. I know that seems a little bit weird setting an expense goal, though, is just as important as setting a revenue goal because it ensures that the money coming into your business is managed wisely to support sustainable growth. Because without a clear expense target, it's really easy to overspend on things that don't actually add real value, leaving you with a little profit at the end of the day. 

09:11 And I'm sure you've all done it. You've gone on and Threads, you've gone on Instagram, you've gone on Facebook, wherever it is, and all of a sudden you see an ad for something that looks really, really interesting and you click that buy button and all of a sudden at the end of the month, you're wondering why you're two 300$ short because you purchased a course that you maybe didn't need to purchase within that month. That's not saying that you never needed to purchase it. It's more saying about being intentional with what you're spending in any given month and given week any given day. Expense goals help to create that intentionality by helping you distinguish between essential and non essential costs, whether you're setting a fixed dollar amount or a percentage of revenue. 

09:56 For example, you might aim to spend no more than 5000 of a ten thousand dollar monthly income or keep expenses at 25 % of total revenue. Remember, it's not about restricting yourself, but building awareness and guiding your decisions you can track where your money is going and make adjustments when necessary. For example, of a certain percentage feels too limiting. You can adjust your goals and they should be flexible and evolve with your business. Now, this is where we're talking about those goals that grow with you. You might start out in business with only 2000$ in revenue, and you might only want to spend 500$ in expenses. 

10:34 And the next next month you're making 5000$ in revenue and you want to up that expense goal. These are goals that are going to grow with you and with intention. Ultimately, expense goals help you become more strategic by balancing necessary investments like marketing or hiring with profitability. They empower you to spend smarter, avoid unnecessary financial stress, and ensure your business has the resources to grow sustainably over time. The next goal we want to talk about is net income or profit. Setting a net income goal is crucial because it focuses on what truly matters, profit, not revenue. 

11:16 While revenue shows you how much money your business brings in, net income tells you what's left after covering all expenses, taxes, and costs, giving you a clear picture of your business's financial health. Without a net income goal, it's easy to fall into the trap of increasing revenue while rising expenses quietly eat away your profits, a net income goal ensures you're not just working hard to generate more sales, but working hard to keep your business profitable. It encourages you to track both income and expenses closely, making intentional spending decisions and focus on areas that provide the highest return on investment. 

11:56 For example, if your goal is to achieve 30 % net income from a hundred thousand dollars in revenue you'll aim to keep thirty thousand dollars in profit, guiding you to manage costs and maximize efficiency. Net income goals also provide long term sustainability, giving you the resources to reinvest in your business, save for taxes, pay off debt, or take home a healthy paycheck. Ultimately, they help you align your business decisions with what really matters, profitability, stability, and personal financial freedom so that you can grow your business in a way that works for you and not the other way around. 

12:36 The next goal that we want to talk about is setting a goal for how much you want to pay yourself, because we've talked about revenue, we've talked about expenses, we've talked about profit. But paying yourself is essential because as a business owner, you deserve to be compensated for the hard work you put in, and your personal financial well-being should not be an afterthought. Without a clear pay goal, it's really easy to fall into a trap of reinvesting everything that comes into your business back into it or simply paying yourself what's left after expenses, which can lead to burnout and financial stress. 

13:12 So establishing a pay goal ensures that your business not only covers operational costs, but also supports your personal needs and goals. Whether that's saving for retirement, paying off debt, or just taking care of your family. It helps you to create those boundaries between business and personal finances so your business serves your life, not the other way around. Additionally, setting a pay goal forces you to be intentional about your pricing and expenses. For example, if you want to pay yourself sixty thousand dollars a year, your business needs to generate enough revenue to cover both that amount and the amount that you want to spend on operating expenses with profit leftover for savings or growth. 

13:51 So a clear pay goal is going to give you that clarity to adjust your strategy when needed, whether that's raising prices, managing your expenses more carefully, or bringing in additional clients to meet both business and personal financial targets. Ultimately, setting a goal for how much you want to pay yourself isn't just about the money. It's about ensuring that your business supports your personal freedom, happiness, and quality of life. Because with a clear pay goal, you're going to gain confidence in your financial future and feel a sense of achievement knowing your hard work is creating real, tangible benefits for both you and your personal life. 

14:34 The last one we want to talk about is other goals. Setting business goals beyond financial targets is essential because it helps you focus on the bigger picture and align your actions with the vision you have for your business. While revenue and profit goals keep your business financially healthy, these additional goals bring intention and excitement to what you want to achieve beyond just the numbers. These could include operational upgrades like buying new equipment or software, professional growth such as attending a conference or completing a course, or personal milestones like taking more time off or hiring help to lighten your workload. 

15:12 By setting these goals, you're giving yourself permission to dream and strategize for the future, ensuring that your business evolves in a way that supports both your business and your day-to-day needs. They provide clear action steps to move your business forward, whether that's planning for new investments, improving processes, or seeking out growth opportunities. For example, buying a new computer could improve efficiency, attending a conference might lead to valuable networking opportunities, or hiring A-Team member could free up time for you to focus on higher level tasks. These goals act as motivators that keep you energized throughout the year by reminding you why you started your business in the first place. 

15:53 When your business isn't just about hitting financial targets but also about pursuing things that bring joy, growth, and value, you're more likely to stay engaged and committed. Writing down these goals and tracking them helps you to stay accountable and ensures that the important milestones like attending that conference or upgrading your systems actually happens. The more you align your daily actions with your big picture vision, the more likely you are to build a business that serves your life and grows in meaningful ways. 

16:24 I know you might be thinking that other goals don't have a real purpose in setting financial goals, but again, they do, and they can be broken down into manageable chunks. For example, again, if you're looking to buy a laptop and it cost you 2000$ setting that up to split it up over 12 months will give you that real idea that you're setting aside money for a purpose. 

16:46 And so when you're making those expense purchases or you might have extra money for expenses, it might leave you thinking, OK, do I want to further my goal of getting my laptop or do I want to spend money on expenses? 

17:00 Now, after all of this, we want to analyze how do we grow from this. When we think about how to use goals to grow, it's essential to focus on the numbers. Tracking and reflecting on your progress gives you the insights needed to make better decisions. So if you're just tracking your numbers but you're not actually reflecting on them, you're only seeing half the story they're trying to tell you. There are two key things to remember. First of all, small wins, no matter how small, are still wins. If you hit your goal one month but miss it the next, that's OK. 

17:35 The important thing is to celebrate your wins when they happen and use them to fuel that future growth. Remember that this process isn't about shaming yourself for falling short, but about building momentum. It's about acknowledging your progress and understanding where to go next, utilizing those numbers to figure out what's your next big move. Every small success becomes a building block for long term growth. You want to learn from both your wins and your misses. 

18:09 You want to take that time to reflect on your goals you hit and understand why you hit them. For instance, if your goal was to generate ten thousand dollars in revenue and you achieved it, you want to ask yourself what contributed to that success. Did you increase advertising or engage more on social media? On the other hand, if your revenue, if you hit your revenue target, but your expenses were 10 % higher than planned, perhaps due to increased ad spending, you want to ask if that extra cost was worth it. 

18:40 It did bring you in more business, but was it worth it should you adjust next month's approach to include that extra cost so that you can get those similar results? Reflecting on these details helps you to fine tune your strategy and understand how to move your business forward. I want to share an example from one of my clients. When they first came to me, they felt completely stuck. They weren't setting goals similar to myself and were operating on autopilot, hoping that things could improve without a clear plan. 

19:10 After we worked together to set specific revenue, expense and profit goals, as well as pay goals, everything began to shift. The first few months were challenging because they didn't always hit their targets, but we tracked the numbers and has helped them to see what worked and what wasn't. One month, they noticed that increasing their ad spend brought in more leads, which boosted revenue. However, that meant their expenses also climbed. The following month, we adjusted the goal by optimizing ad spending while focusing more on organic social engagement, which reduced expenses without sacrificing sales. 

19:47 By the end of the year, their business had grown by 30 %. More importantly, they finally felt in control of their numbers. They weren't guessing anymore. They had tools to understand what was driving their business forward. And that is exactly how we should use the data that we get from our bookkeeping from our numbers. And these goals is to empower ourselves. If you don't hit every target, the goal setting process provides valuable insights into how to grow. 

20:17 And that's how we use these goals to grow. Some months will be better than others and that's normal. You need to acknowledge that you're not always going to have an amazing month. The key is to use these tools to learn, adjust, and keep moving forward with clarity, purpose, and of course, intentionality. So now I want to offer you one final step. As we've been going through this presentation, I asked you a question at the beginning, and I want you to ask yourself, what is one small action that you can commit to today to move closer to your financial goals? What can you do to start taking those steps to achieve what you want to achieve by the end of next year? Where do you want to be next year and what can you start doing today to get there? 

21:05 Now, if you're thinking Samantha, this sounds like a lot of work. I don't think that way. My brain doesn't work that way. I just need to chat with you. Then I'm 110 % there for you. First of all, if you have any questions from this presentation, you can feel free to reach out to me at my Instagram, my Threads or my website. And if you're interested in learning about more resources, you can check out my podcast Creative Mind, Smart Money, which is entirely free and has a many episodes that help you on financial topics. 

21:39 More importantly, if you're like, I just need someone to help me, please feel free to jump on my website and send me an inquiry i'd be more than happy to walk you through how we can utilize these goals and your bookkeeping to get you where you need to be in your business. Otherwise, I appreciate you so much for listening to this presentation and I hope today that you've learned how to utilize these goals to grow your business and utilize them to grow with you.