Doing Too Many Good Things?

MTYL Memo #26: Too many goals = too little progress.

Focus matters, as evidenced by what I’ve seen with every one of my clients.

Regardless of their income, to them it feels like they have a “money problem”—too much spending, not enough money to go around, not enough discipline. But it’s almost never one of these.

More often, it’s a focus and organization problem, and that’s great news.

It’s hard to make sense of and sort out anything when it’s a jumble of parts and priorities. Options get awfully murky when focus is spread too thin. But clarity sweeps in when you organize the parts and simplify your goals.

Nearly every client has been doing multiple “good” things, simultaneously:

• Saving

• Investing

• Paying extra toward multiple debts

• Prioritizing their dreams and priorities

• Being generous

And yet their credit mounts, their savings yo-yo and deplete, and they feel guilty about nearly every part of their financial system. It feels crummy to do so much good and make so little headway—or worse, dig a deeper hole.

What’s happening? Plain and simple, they’re trying to advance on multiple fronts—a hefty ask.

But on one or two fronts? Absolutely doable—for them, for me, for you.

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