Personal finance: How small steps can achieve BIG results

Stephen Grootes gets top tips from Warren Ingram, co-founder and director of Galileo Capital.

It's good and it's necessary to set ourselves financial goals, but if they're just too big, we're unlikely to succeed.

When it comes to personal finance, the path to success is often paved with small, steps rather than giant leaps, says personal financial adviser Warren Ingram (co-founder of Galileo Capital).

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And it's important that these small steps are CONSISTENT, Ingram emphasizes.

"We see so many New Year's resolutions fail... Part of the reason is we set ourselves these massive goals and it's the same with our money - we set goals to be debt-free or save my first million by the end of the year."

"The problem is when we set those huge goals we set ourselves up to fail."

Warren Ingram, Director - Galileo Capital

Small changes are not only more achievable, they're more flexible and have the benefit of adding up over time, Ingram says

The personal finance guru shares some tips on how to capitalise on those small changes.

HOW TO PUT SMALL CHANGES INTO PRACTICE:

1. Set specific, measurable goals: Instead of saying you want to 'save more money' set a goal like 'save R500 per month'.
2. Break big goals into smaller steps: If your goal is to pay off R100,000 in debt, break it down into smaller chunks. Maybe start with paying off the smallest debt balance first and move to the next to build momentum.
3. Automate your savings and payments: Set up automatic transfers to your savings account and automatic payments for your bills to make saving and paying on time a no-brainer.
4. Review and adjust regularly: Schedule regular check-ins to review your progress and adjust your plan as needed.

Scroll to the top of the article to listen to Ingram's detailed advice