My Goals For 2015

settinggoalsIt’s another year, which is another huge opportunity in front of us to move closer to the versions of ourselves we want to be. Like I recently discussed, I believe there’s a future me that’s already financially independent, waiting for the me of today to reach this eventuality.

However, I still need to keep walking the path if I want to get to that eventuality. It’s not going to happen magically. Believing in yourself is extremely important, but execution is just as critical.

So I set SMART goals at the beginning of every year. And I not only set these goals, but I announce and track them publicly, which keeps me incredibly motivated to give it my all. Each one of the goals I set this year, like every other year, are extremely aggressive, but also have the long-term picture in mind. Each goal, if reached, gets me exactly as far in one year as I’d need to travel to stay on pace for my overarching goal of financial independence by 40 years old. Exceeding goals, which is always wonderful, means I’m ahead of pace. Perhaps the future me is getting impatient?

I’m extremely excited for what 2015 has in store. Not just for me, but all of you in this community as well. A year can fly by so quickly, but it’s actually a fairly long period of time. And it can bring you so much closer to what you want out of life, if you consistently and routinely stick to good habits and make good choices.

Here are my goals for 2015:

Goal #1 – Receive $7,200 In Dividends During The Year Of 2015

Whew! I’d LOVE to hit this. I’m actually a little ahead of pace, so missing my mark for the first time since I’ve started investing wouldn’t be totally devastating. That said, I’m somewhat confident I can generate this kind of income this year. This adds up to $600 per month. Let me repeat that. $600 per month. And I’ve only been at this since 2010, and even then it was a few months into the year. So stick with it. This is real-life progress. No backtesting. No theories. Nothing hypothetical. What you see here is real-life cash flow from real-life saving and investing.

I finished last year with $5,721.60 in total dividend income. So achieving my goal this year would be an almost $1,500 improvement, or just over 25%. I was more confident about this goal before the sale of American Realty Capital Properties Inc. (ARCP), but I’m still in fairly good shape. The power of diversification means the elimination of a big payer like that didn’t really set me back all that far. Reinvested dividends and dividend raises alone should account for about 10% of the 25% I’m aiming for. The other 15% will have to come from new capital, so this will be really tough. I’m actually excited just to be able to live out my dream and write for a living, so coming up with more than $20,000 worth of new capital this year to invest would just be out of this world. It’ll be a big challenge.

This is the goal I’m most anxious about this year. It’s very, very exciting to think about averaging $600 per month in dividend income. That’s getting pretty close to covering my expenses in a few cheaper foreign countries out there. The possibilities are just amazing. If I hit this number, that means I’ll pass through $6,000 and $7,000 this year, after blowing past $4,000 and $5,000 in annual dividend income last year. The snowball is definitely accelerating.

Goal #2 – Save 50% Of My Net Income, Averaged Monthly

I honestly thought about scaling this one back a bit. I know it’s going to be incredibly difficult to save 50% of my net income after taking a fairly large pay cut by moving over to writing full-time. But I’m going to keep the difficulty level cranked way up to see just what I’m capable of. I think this is an achievable goal, but probably about as tough as it can possibly get. Hey, why not?

I didn’t miss 50% by much last year, but I definitely noticed the extra challenge without the occasional monster commission check from the old dealership job. So not only am I out to get back on track and exceed 50% like I’m used to, but also aiming to do so without the benefit of a traditional paycheck for the first six months of the year like I benefited from in 2014.

We’ll see how this one goes. A major headwind beyond just the lower income is higher taxes. I’m absolutely positive I’m going to owe well into the thousands when I do my taxes this year due to not paying enough quarterly estimated taxes last year. I set up payments before my online income increased fairly dramatically toward the back half of the year. Another headwind is going to be potentially higher expenses from the likes of a wedding, traveling to Omaha this year to see Warren Buffett in person, and possibly FinCon. We’ll see how it goes!

Goal #3 – Weigh 180 Pounds Or Less By The End Of 2015

I’m starting the year at 179 pounds, so this may not seem particularly challenging. Maybe I need a break after some big challenges above. Seriously, though, this is a long-term goal of mine that I’ll likely repeat every year. I’m not taking it easy, however, since this is a tough weight for me to maintain.

I have a slightly larger frame than most, something I cultivated in my early teen years as a competitive bodybuilder. But whereas I was previously interested in anaerobic exercise, I’ve been shifting to more aerobic fitness over the last few years. This has allowed me to slim down, require less protein, and put less stress on my body. It’s still a challenge for me since I almost subconsciously try to constantly push myself in terms of strength training.

This goal will also obviously require careful calorie counting. I love to eat like most everyone else, so this is tough. I’m certainly not an ascetic eater, though I did divert my diet early on in my journey closer to basic subsistence to save as much as possible. Now that the days of extreme frugality are somewhat behind me, I have to probably watch calories more than pennies. It’s always something, isn’t it?

Goal #4 – Net $36,000 In Online Income This Year

I’m being a bit more specific on this goal this year, while also tripling the number I’m aiming for. So what I’m hoping to achieve here is $36,000 in income via all online sources, be it blogging, freelancing, etc. And my goal is to do so net of taxes. I think I could easily gross this figure, but it’s not money in my pocket if Uncle Sam is taking his portion.

I will note that I’m not including expenses like hosting. I certainly look forward to deducting these expenses, which will help with the tax burden, but the number I’m looking at will be gross minus taxes. I’ll also be setting up a rather aggressive quarterly estimated tax schedule this year, so whatever I net this year should be very accurate.

This goal is made more difficult by the fact that, as aforementioned, I’m confident I’ll owe a fairly hefty sum this spring for taxes. But what fun is it if I’m not setting the bar extremely high? If I can achieve this goal and hit my dividend income numbers, they both work as means to the end of hitting my savings goal this year. So I kind of have to really hit this number here in order to have a good shot at the other two goals. I’m obviously going to give it 100% and then some and am doing my best to stay busy.

Conclusion

There you have it. Each goal is a SMART goal, though exactly how attainable some of these goals are is debatable. I have a pretty good record with hitting my goals thus far, but I truly believe this is my most difficult set of goals yet. The bar has been raised pretty high here.

As always, I appreciate all the support all of you throughout the community give me. I’m doing my best to give back through content and inspiration. I don’t write articles just to “put something out there”. Each article comes from my heart and I only write what I think is interesting and worthwhile to read. And I’ll continue this mantra throughout 2015 and beyond. I put a lot of time into this blog and all the content I create across the internet, so thank you for appreciating that and supporting my vision of a community.

I’ll do a mid-year checkup on these goals once June comes around. I think it’s somewhat likely I’ll be behind, relying on the second half of the year to catch up. Stay tuned!

Full Disclosure: None.

What do you think of these goals? Challenging? What are your goals for the year? Anything you really want to accomplish?

Thanks for reading.

Photo Credit: Stuart Miles/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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158 Comments

  1. DM,
    Best of luck achieving your goals this year. I enjoyed your SMART goals post and I’m planning to follow that blueprint while finalizing my 2015 financial goals this week. $600 per month is a great number to shoot for.
    -RBD

  2. Long time lurker. I just hit my 70k mark after almost 3 years. I hope to hit 100k by years end. Take care and good luck to you.

  3. Dividend Mantra,

    I think something going to happen to change your life this year big time. I am predicting you will get a call from some organization or company to come and talk to a crowd of their employees and be paid $2000 to $5000.

    $7200 in dividend Income.. That would be nice. My annual dividend income is about half that right now if I count my trade (DREAM OFFICE REIT) that I talk about in my dividend updates.

  4. Nice looking set of goals DM. I’m cheering for you to not only reach each one, but to exceed them as well!
    Really hoping you make great strides with the online income. You’ve got a really strong foundation you have built over the last few years so I’m thinking great things are still ahead of you.

  5. Nice goal Jason…challenging, but yet not too far out of reach. In a way, 4, 2, and 1 are somewhat inter-related. In order to meet goal #1, you need to meet goal #4 (money to invest needs to come from somewhere). As for #2, unless you exceed goal #4, you’ll actually need to possibly save more than 50% since half of $36K is only $18K, and you estimated that you’ll need to invest about $20K. But I guess a few high dividend payers could technically lower that figure. Either way, good luck in achieving each and every one of your goals. Looking forward to watching your progress in the upcoming year! AFFJ

  6. Good set of goals DM ! Make sure to keep us posted on how you are progressing along ! All the best in 2015 🙂

  7. RBD,

    Awesome! Glad you found some value in that post. I think it’s just a great system and easy to use.

    Appreciate the support. Wishing you the best for your goals as well. Super excited to see what’s yet to come. 🙂

    Cheers!

  8. Wood,

    Is that $70k in dividend income? If so, that’s pretty amazing! I’m guessing you’re investing something like $600k per year? I’d be financially independent on just one year of your investments. 🙂

    Keep up the incredible work.

    Thanks for dropping by!

    Take care.

  9. IP,

    That would be pretty incredible! I actually may have a potential opportunity to do something like that later this year. Has to pan out just right, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed. 🙂

    $3,500 in dividend income is still pretty solid, my friend. I was at that level not long ago. Doesn’t take long to really accelerate, as you can see. Stick with it!

    Best regards.

  10. Stoic,

    Thanks, bud. Appreciate the vote of confidence. There’s definitely a great foundation there, so it’s really just living up to that and continuing to work hard, doing my best to put out the kind of content that I think is worth reading. This is probably going to be my toughest year yet in terms of the kind of pressure I’m putting on myself, but it’s also probably the most exciting. And I really feel like I’m turning the corner here. It’s just amazing. 🙂

    Looking forward to “The Year of The Stoic” as well. Exciting on all fronts for all of us. Incredible opportunities lie ahead.

    Best of luck!!

    Cheers.

  11. AFFJ,

    Exactly. I mentioned that toward the end of the post. In order to really have a good shot at the dividend income and savings goal, I have to exceed that online income goal. So that’s where a lot of my energy is going to be directed. Without capital, I can’t save and invest. I think it’s going to be a big challenge, but I’m excited to take it on. It’ll be averaging $3,000 per month after taxes, which would just be phenomenal. I would have never dreamed of that kind of income just two years ago!

    Appreciate the support. I hope to post a solid update six months from now showing that I’m not too far behind pace. 🙂

    Best wishes!

  12. PIM,

    Thanks so much!

    It’s very exciting. I think this is going to be a huge year in a lot of regards. I’m going to do my best to have fun, live in the moment, and get even closer to the me I want to eventually be. 🙂

    Thanks for dropping by.

    Best regards!

  13. Best of luck Jason! We’ve both put ourselves to the task with ambitious goals for 2015. I’m hoping by years end I’ll be able to make mine, and I’d love to see you blaze through yours as well throughout the year! I think a virtual pizza party is in order for success 🙂

  14. Good luck on your goals Jason. It’s crazy that you’re shooting for 36k in online income which I’m sure didn’t even exist before you started this blog. I bet you never imagined you’d be a writer 5 years ago.

  15. Hi Jason,

    Thanks for sharing your journey with us. It is incredible to see how far you have come! Congratulations!

    I think the goals you have set for yourself are quite challenging (specifically the one around increasing your income 3x times). I wish you all the best for your goals!

    As for myself, my biggest aim for this year is to reduce bad (consumer bad). Currently, I owe 10 months of my living expense in consumer debt. Sometimes I wonder how did I manage to do this to myself? I do realise that it’s pretty bad! Your blog and real progress is very inspiring and provides a lot of hope that one day I will be able to break this cycle. As they say, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

    Regards,
    Steve

  16. Good luck in 2015! Those goals all are achievable. The dividend gain would be extremely impressive. I’m only aiming for 6% passive income growth. Maybe I’m shooting too low. Our dividend portfolio should grow at least 10%, but our retirement accounts are mostly in stock and bond index so not much growth there.

  17. Tough goals there mate. But achievable. Just like goals should be.

    Mind me asking where the freelance witting has been?

    Mr Z

  18. I just want to mention how much I admire your continuing transparency, openness, and integrity. It really stands apart. For example, few other bloggers would admit that they make a lot of online income, but you actually make it a goal! It makes sense – what you do isn’t sell credit cards, but provide value through analysis and experience.

    And not only do you provide full disclosure, but you do it with your real name and face! I only worry that some ill may come out of it, somehow, and hope that you manage to stay safe and secure.

  19. I like how you combine health and wealth in your goals. What’s a bunch of cash if your unhealthy?

    I didn’t go for a specific weight this year, but targeted 2 physical events that will require I be in good shape. One is climbing a 3000m mountain, and the other is swimming 3k across a lake. I’d also like to do a stair climb race up the world’s 2nd tallest building (or maybe 3rd now), but have to get lucky on the registration

    That said, after a year or so of too much cheese cake, I’m down 12 pounds in the last 3 months while gaining measurable strength. I have a post coming about it. I’ve been doing the slow carb diet from 4 Hour Body and regular kettlebell workouts. As a guy that doesn’t like vegetables, you might like it. No calorie counting

  20. Excellent goals! I look forward to seeing your progress on here. : )

    I like how there is one non-finance related goal on the list to keep things interesting.

  21. Sounds like a great, and comprehensive, set of goals! I love your calories vs. pennies comment–sometimes I feel the same way :). Like if there’s free food at work but it’s super unhealthy, I usually won’t eat it, but I hate passing up a free meal. So I agree, it’s always something :). Best of luck to you this year!

  22. Jason,

    Thanks for sharing your goals with us. It’s refreshing to read blog such as yours, because so many people out there are wasting their money, and thus their future away. Your future self will be happy you put in the hard work to set up a solid foundation.

    I think if you concentrate on number 4, the rest will fall into place. Keep plugging away at those opportunities to further your story, whether by wiring or speaking in front of others. I’m sure there’ll be plenty of opportunities like this for you in the future.

    Our goals are a lot more modest, having only recently added dividends to our other income streams, we sometimes feel like we’re back at the beginning. But we understand the power of DGI and value investing with dividend reinvested, so we look forward to increasing wealth.

    Best wishes with each of these goals during 2015, and I look forward to your midway report,

    Cheers,

    M

  23. Great goals Jason and I wish you the best in trying to achieve them! Over $7,000 in dividend income would be amazing. I myself am shooting for around $4,500, up from $2,800 last year. Your online income figure is awesome! To do what you love and get paid a tidy sum to do it is fantastic. I’ll have to get a goals post up for 2015, thanks for the idea.

    Best of luck accomplishing your goals!

  24. I think you are going to smash that $36,000 in online income goal. If I were you, I would’ve just given myself a gross online income goal, since you already have a savings goal.

    $7,200 in dividends would be really sweet, and I expect you to meet that goal as well. Hopefull you have a little money to invest in the next few months before your taxes are due.

  25. As with this past year, I believe you’ll succeed this upcoming year, in ways you aren’t anticipating. Given the size of your platform right now, you have the tremendous opportunity to leverage your readership for income growth or opportunities for other writing/speaking gigs. Either way, I think you’re in great shape to continue your pursuit of financial independence, and thankful to be a fellow blogger and share in this journey with you.

  26. DM,

    Thanks for the consistent content, and for your relentless commitment to the site. You truely have built a community of like minded individuals. I continue to be an advocate of DM and push people to check out how impressive your site is. The fact that you are doing this in real-time really sets you apart from others who do the documentation point after they have realized monetary success, and will leave out important points.

    Good luck this year with such aggressive goals! Keep up the amazing work!

    GD

  27. i have no doubt with your positive mind and grit determination you will be financially independent for the 2 nd half of your life, if not sooner , as well as very successful and happy in what you choose do with your time.

    any thoughts on the oil saga. you have BP and RDSB?

  28. DM, after stumbling onto your and DGI’s Blogs and info I’m in a slow process of completely rethinking my retirement investing principles. I’m locked into certain funds through my 401k account but my brokerage and ROTH are completely open.

    You’re doing a great job!!

  29. Loving your goals. I’m sure you will hit your dividend income goal.

    36,000 In Online Income would be HUGE! Continue writing all these excellent articles you have. Have you thought about publishing a book eventually?

  30. Some really nice set of goals, Jason. $36K in online income is massive. Best wishes in your endeavor and looking forward to tracking your progress through the year.

    R2R

  31. Haha I wish it was that way. I make a modest enlisted military income, but have been using your blog as a motivator and guide to save as much as I can. 70K is what I have saved up so far, and has been spitting out roughly $2500 in yearly dividends. Thanks!

  32. Great goals all around Jason. The dividend income goal will probably be the toughest since you have to invest about 20k, though that is up in the air if we receive some hefty dividend raises. Lets keep our fingers crossed on that. As far as the savings rate goes, you have done 50% and even better multiple times, so shouldn’t be a big problem here. And finally the weight goal, all I can honestly recommend about weight loss is run, run and run some more. I know you mentioned you live by the beach, beach runs are amazing, plus you can’t beat the scenery. I go out running in the nearby forrest preserve next to me and love it.

    Hope you have an outstanding year!

    Take care.

  33. Here’s hoping you achieve your financial and personal goals! One of the main expenses I have is cars. I will preface to say I like cars and live in an area whrer it is absolutely necessary. That being said, I like your idea of used cars and was wondering on a slow news day whether you could address what are reliable, value cars for strictly transportation. I am sure other readers of this blog would be happy to chime in on good versus unreliable cars, etc. Good luck!

  34. Nice man, good luck! My investing goals got kind of pushed aside this year to focus on debt. I should be able to knock out about ~$30,000 of it this year which will open that amount up for investing in future years. It’s depressing to already look forward to 2016 in January of 2015 but at least my current investments are set on DRIP so I’ll get a little increase. I need to remember how this feels next time I consider taking a large loan out.

  35. DM,

    This means that sometime in 2016, you will be covering half of your expenses with dividend income alone. Even 40% coverage from dividends in 2015 sounds awesome. This means you only need to make $10,000 – $11,000/year from work to cover expenses.

    Of course, by doing some extra work now, you are really letting the snowball rolling.. You need to work hard in the next few years to build up your nest egg, but once you reach $18K/year (I thought that was your number), then you can do whatever you want.

  36. DM,

    4 excellent goals. $7,200 will be a huge accomplishment if you can pull it off. Doing all 3 financial goals will be like getting your foot into the FI door.

    Staying in shape wise, its nice you live in FL. Its been cold, even up here in the DC area of late – and I like to run / workout outdoors. Its been good hockey weather, but unfortunately there are few ponds and most don’t freeze over enough. What have you been doing in this realm of late? You doing some sports / running or are you still doing more lifting?

    Speaking of hockey, do you get to watch a lot down there?

    – Dividend Gremlin

  37. How do quarterly taxes work if your income fluctuates? If you set it up to have a large amount go to quarterly taxes and then your income evaporates in the second half of the year are you just screwed? Or can you modify how much you are paying for each quarter? I haven’t had to delve into quarterly taxes yet.

  38. DW,

    A pizza party sounds pretty good to me. I think if I hit these goals, I’ll be definitely celebrating with some pizza. Though, not too much, so I don’t go over 180 pounds. 🙂

    I’m really looking forward to 2015. Feels like many of us are kind of turning the corner where the passive income is starting to hit critical mass. Life is definitely changing for the better!

    Thanks for dropping by.

    Cheers!

  39. Noob,

    I’ll definitely keep everyone posted. I hope I’m not too far behind by the time the midway point of the year rolls around. Definitely gonna give it my all. 🙂

    Best of luck to you with your goals in 2015 as well. Hope you’re able to hit them all. It’d be great to have $20,000 invested in the market at your age.

    Take care!

  40. Zee,

    It’s really crazy. Never would have thought I’d be in this position in 2015. I planned to stay at the dealership until 40, though I had secretly hoped that there would be someway I could jump off that train and coast to the finish line. Just didn’t think it’d be like this or this early. I’m obviously extremely grateful that it happened this way. 🙂

    I’m just hoping I can keep it rolling!

    Thanks for stopping by.

    Best regards.

  41. Your goal looks good to me. I hope you achieve them. As far as markets go I have few stocks on watch list but no action other then purchase small amount in GE and PSX this week and purchase small amount in DEO,UL, and PEP last week.

  42. Steve,

    Thanks. I appreciate the congrats. It’s definitely wonderful to think how far I’ve come along now in a few short years, but I think that kind of success can largely be replicated for most people. Which is why I continue to write, share, and inspire. 🙂

    These goals are definitely challenging. Probably my most challenging goals to date. We’ll see how it goes. Even if I miss them by a little, I’ll still be a lot closer to the me I eventually want to be.

    Consumer debt is like an anchor that will hold you down, trying to drown you. The good news is that you’re aware of the situation and out to pay it off. Some people just let that linger for years and years. In those cases, they’ll never get to shore. You’ll get there. Every day is an opportunity to move yourself closer to being debt free.

    Best of luck!!

    Cheers.

  43. Joe,

    Yeah, those index funds will probably weigh on the actual passive income growth a bit. I only have the individual stocks, so I think a 10% baseline is pretty reasonable. That’s assuming 7% growth through dividend raises only, though even 6%, which is probably pretty modest, still gets me pretty close.

    You guys have a pretty big base you’re working with now, so things are pretty much on autopilot over there. Keep up the great work!

    Thanks for dropping by.

    Best wishes.

  44. Mr. Z,

    Exactly. These are at the tippy top of what’s attainable for me. Everything will have to go perfect for me to get there. But the challenge is fun. 🙂

    You can see the bulk of my freelance output at Daily Trade Alert right now, though my presence in that arena is growing.

    Cheers!

  45. innerscorecardblog,

    Thank you. Appreciate the kind words there. I set out from the beginning to show what everything looks like behind the curtain. I found it hard to find any blogs out there when I first started that showed from start to finish how exactly one gets to financial independence. I think, by nature, people like to keep a little of the information held back for one reason or another. But I wanted to create a road map that anyone can follow.

    I’ve thought about how releasing my identity may cause more harm than good, but I also know there are a lot of people in the world with a lot more money than me. If someone wanted to really chase after someone, I would think I’d be last on that list. I’m probably not even in the top 1,000 wealthiest people in my own city, so the risk/reward for someone to come after me just doesn’t make sense, in my view.

    Thanks for dropping by!

    Best regards.

  46. All good goals Jason. I am still working on mine. Wondering if my health one should be based on body fat% or weight. I don’t want to drop weight at the expense of muscle. Rather loose the fat and build some muscle. Good luck.
    DFG

  47. Jeremy,

    Wealth without health isn’t wealth at all. I could probably list a few more health-related goals, but I think weight is somewhat of a decent proxy for overall health. It certainly isn’t all-encompassing, but it works for the purposes of the blog.

    Those events sound pretty awesome. I can’t swim at all, so the lake would be out for me. But the climb sounds great. Competitive stair climbing sounds pretty great as well. Never tried something like that. My routine is pretty repetitive and boring these days, though it’s hard to complain about jogging outdoors in January when most people are digging their cars out of the snow.

    Haven’t heard of the slow carb diet. I used to cut carbs when I was training for a show back in the day and I used to get massive headaches. They were almost debilitating. I still remember that stuff. Sounds like the plan is working for you. Keep it up!!

    Cheers.

  48. Jeff,

    Thanks! 🙂

    I try to mix it up. You’ve got a savings goal, passive income goal, active income goal, and health goal. It’s a short list, but focused. And hitting all of those goals means the rest of my life is probably hitting a pretty good groove, so there’s no need for me to list out 20 goals. And they all work together anyway. Hitting #4 will be the most important to the finances, however. Without that, the others probably fall apart, so we’ll see how it goes. 🙂

    You’re doing great over there for only 25 years old. I was still broke at 25. Keep up the great work!

    Best wishes.

  49. Mrs. FW,

    Haha. I know exactly what you mean. I used to go through that mental exercise at work as well when there would be free food. I’d sit there and think about the calories and the saved money and try to weigh out the pros and cons. Too funny! 🙂

    Best of luck to you guys as well this year. Getting closer to the dream. This’ll be a big year for the FWs!

    Cheers.

  50. M,

    The future me is out there already financially independent, waiting for the me of today to make the right choices so I catch up. So everything I do is in the name of merging those two timelines. It’s really an interesting way to think about life and finances. 🙂

    My goals were a lot more modest just going back a few years ago. It takes a little time to get the motor running, but look out once you do. I sometimes think my dividend income is getting to the point where it may actually be disheartening to beginners, but I think there’s still a lot of value in retracing my steps from the beginning. It’s only been a few years now, so the amount of dividend income that can be built in a relatively short period of time is incredible, and just speaks to the power of this strategy.

    Stick with it. You’ll get to where you want to be. 🙂

    Best regards.

  51. ADD,

    Wow. Very nice goal there for dividend income. That would be a big move up. That means you’re going to probably invest north of $40k this year. Fantastic! 🙂

    The online income is definitely fantastic. I’m extremely grateful to be in this position. It’s about as close to financial independence as I can get right now. I’m just doing my best to grow that and keep it going.

    Looking forward to seeing your goals for 2015!

    Best wishes.

  52. EWB,

    Hmm, I’m not sure about smashing it. I’m willing to bet I’ll owe at least a few thousand in taxes from income earned last year. And my quarterly estimated taxes are going to be more reflective of my earning power this year. It’ll be very challenging to net $3,000/month all the way through. One potential tailwind is that I’m still growing freelance opportunities, which is now where the bulk of my online income comes from. So we’ll see! 🙂

    I’m looking forward to getting some tax statements here over the next few weeks so I can see exactly where I stand. Not sure if I’ll be able to invest in February (or March). Just depends on how much cash I have to come up with. Either way, I think I’ll at least come close with many of these goals. And that’ll be more than enough to keep the dream alive.

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Take care.

  53. DM,

    Great set of goals. Quick question. What is your projected annual dividend income at the end of 2014? That will definitely be more than ~$5700 that you received in 2014. So that will definitely help a bit in hitting the $7200 goal for 2015.

  54. W2R,

    Thanks for the vote of confidence. I really appreciate it. You were right before and saw more opportunities/potential than I did, so maybe you’re right again. I certainly hope that’s the case. 🙂

    I’m maybe sometimes too conservative, so I decided to really lay the throttle down on these goals and see where it all ends up. I figured it can’t hurt to really reach. Even if I don’t hit them, it’ll still be a good fight. I’m in it for 12 rounds!

    Looking forward to seeing how this year shapes up for you as well. Should be a huge year.

    Cheers!

  55. GD,

    Thanks so much for that. I’m incredibly glad you understand and appreciate the vision I have for a community and an open journey from start to finish. I wrote quite a while ago about why I blog, and it was exactly because there are so many financially successful people that talk about their journeys well after they’re completed. Nobody shows what the climb to the peak of the mountain looks like as it happens. You generally just get to read a book long after the climb is done. So I wanted to share it all, ups and downs included.

    Thank you as well for sharing the site and the message. I hope it reaches some new eyeballs and they’re able to change their futures.

    Best wishes!

  56. Dawn,

    Thank you. I’m doing all I can to make that dream a reality. And it’s getting closer by the day. 🙂

    I’m long BP and RDS.B. The news for BP seems positive. I figured they’d owe the whole lot, though it wouldn’t really be a big deal for them anyway. But oil is heavily cyclical and volatile. Just over the last 10 years it’s been all over from $40/bbl to $140/bbl. So this kind of volatility should be expected. Some are surprised to see this, but I actually wouldn’t be surprised to see it get a lot worse. As for the stocks, some are better deals than others. BP in particular is cheap, even after today’s pop. Although, I also don’t think their dividend is as secure as other supermajors and their payout history is somewhat lumpy.

    Cheers!

  57. Jason,

    Those are lofty, yet achievable goals. Considering your intense focus, I suspect you will pull it off. I’m still developing my 2015 goals and things are in a state of flux right now.

    I have a very large allocation to cash and that’s tormenting me a bit. My focus has been primarily on getting that money into DG stocks. The largest obstacle is prices/valuation. I have found myself pushing the envelope a little. I have, for example, significantly jacked up our allocation to big oil. They are aristocrats and the yield is lovely.

    I have begun to question that though. Before I go too far, I want to know where I actually want to go, so to speak. I don’t want to continue driving west and then realize it should have been east. NAV allocation to CVX is over 9% and XOM is about 8.5%. This is certainly not a risk free environment for oil companies, so perhaps this isn’t wise on my part.

    Therefore, my first investing goal for 2015 is to develop an investment business plan, setting some guidelines for myself that will help keep me on the path I want to follow. Once I decide which path to take and develop the plan, I will configure my investments accordingly. I never felt like I had time to work on such a plan, but now that I’m retired I have no excuse.

    The final result may very well be significant trimming of some positions. This is likely to put my 2015 income goal in jeopardy, and as you said…. that will seem devastating. However, when your invest-able assets reach a significant level (especially when already retired), it seems prudent to zero in on capital preservation and not just dividend income.

    When I complete “the plan”, I’ll post it on my blog. I hope you will find the time to review it and offer your critique. It will be interesting to see how the year turns out for both of us. At the least, I hope to be a better investor. I wish you well on your plan for 2015.

    Steve

  58. Raymond,

    Glad you’ve found some inspiration and ideas here. That’s what it’s all about! 🙂

    Best of luck implementing some of them and putting yourself in a solid position over there.

    Cheers!

  59. Tawcan,

    Thanks! It’s going to be tough this year, but I wanted to really flex and see what I’m capable of. We’ll see how it goes! 🙂

    I’d love to publish a book. I actually have an idea for a trilogy of books. I have them all written out in my head already. It’s just a matter of finding the time. And with writing as much as I am right now (over 40 articles per month), there’s just no time for it. The first book in the trilogy would have to be written within the next couple of years, so if I can’t find the time then it probably won’t happen the way I want it to. I could certainly put a quick ebook or something together, but I’d rather write a real, in-depth book and publish it on demand. I imagine it’d be more of a legacy/ego thing than anything else, but it’d be great to put something like that into the world permanently. We’ll see.

    Thanks for dropping by!

    Best wishes.

  60. R2R,

    I still can’t believe I’m putting out a goal to net $36k. Things have grown incredibly fast. I’m just hanging along for the ride. 🙂

    Best of luck to you as well with your goals. I think 2015 is going to be a great year for us all. I can just feel it!

    Cheers.

  61. Wood,

    Oh, I’m sorry. I misunderstood you.

    That’s still fantastic progress! You’re pretty much right on pace for what I’ve been able to do, and that’s impressive on a modest military income. Those who think you need to make a ton of money to become financially independent at a relatively young age are just plain wrong. You’re proving it. 🙂

    Cheers!

  62. DV,

    It’s definitely going to be tough this year. Goal #4 is going to be the key. If I can exceed that mark, the other goals should fall into place. If I can’t exceed it, then I’ll probably fall short on the other financial goals. Though, I think it’s very reasonable and realistic to think I can get to 80% or 90% of these goals, which would still be amazing. I’m actually ahead of pace on the dividend income right now, so falling a bit short wouldn’t really be a big deal.

    A beach run sounds great. I’ve never actually done that only because we don’t live close enough for me to do that on a regular basis. We’re about 15 or 20 minutes from Siesta Key by car, so it’s tough to drive all that way to run and then turn around. We go to the beach somewhat often more to relax, but it’s something where we’ll be there for hours to make the drive worth it. I’m lucky, though, in that there’s great scenery where I live. I jog through a residential area, but there’s a nice paved path that’s set apart from everything. Really nice.

    Thanks for stopping by. Wishing you and yours the best this year as well. Hope everything works out with the house!

    Best regards.

  63. wtd7576,

    That’s a good idea! I’ll try to put something together on that. I got really lucky with the Corolla I landed, but you never know what you’re going to get out there. Having cash and being patient are the keys to landing a good car deal. And obviously staying far away from a dealership. Their margin on used cars is just incredible.

    Take care!

  64. Emily,

    Awesome! Can’t wait to see how you guys do with that. I think 50% is where you cross over into extreme saving territory. And it also puts you on a great trajectory for financial independence. I’m a bit bummed I missed that mark by a little last year, but saving 50% for the better part of a decade or so means you’re in a great position, even if you didn’t hit it every year.

    Good luck! 🙂

    Take care.

  65. Tommy,

    I’d be doing the same thing if I were in your position. If I had any consumer debt, I’d be aggressively paying it off before investing. It’s a guaranteed return on your money in a weird sort of way (the interest you won’t be paying), though I hate saying that when we’re talking about debt and actually losing money. I have student loan debt that I’m slowly paying off due to the low interest rate and tax-deductible nature, but I don’t have any other debt.

    Once you get past the debt, you’ll be able to really power through the savings and investments. 🙂

    Best wishes.

  66. DGI,

    Exactamundo. 🙂

    I think 50% coverage of expenses via dividend income sometime in 2016 is correct. It’s awesome to think that even a part-time job at minimum wage can cover you the rest of the way, if worse came to worse. But let’s hope worse doesn’t come to worse!

    Appreciate all the support. You’re getting pretty close over there as well. Just a few years away now. Keep it rolling!

    Best wishes.

  67. DG,

    I used to love hockey as a kid. I was always the goalie. I’d put all my gear on and play hockey for hours. It’s obviously not as popular down here as it was back home. I still love to watch hockey, but after their lockouts and salary issues, they’re not on TV as much anymore. That’s a real shame. I think they were on VS a lot for a bit, but I don’t have cable channels.

    The warm weather definitely makes it easier to go for a jog outside and keep in good shape all year long. Up in Michigan, I had to have a gym membership to effectively work out in the winter. It’s a lot easier down here to navigate around that. And you’re also more motivated to stay in shape down here because the weather is nice and you want to look good/feel good. It’s a little easier to get down in the dumps up there during the winter.

    Keep up the great work over there. You’re earning some serious dividend income. 🙂

    Best regards.

  68. Zol,

    You can modify your estimated taxes by quarter, if your income oscillates wildly. I originally thought quarterly estimated taxes had to be even, and the IRS prefers it be that way. But if something dramatic happens to your income, then you’ll be forced to change your schedule. I should have done so last year so I wouldn’t owe so much this year.

    You can read about how that works here:

    http://www.irs.gov/Businesses/Small-Businesses-&-Self-Employed/Estimated-Taxes

    Cheers!

  69. Henry,

    I’ve definitely thought about writing a book. I have an idea for a trilogy of books. They’re already written and mapped out in my head, but finding the time to put pen to paper with my writing schedule is probably impossible. I’d likely have to cut out most of the freelance writing to make time for that. I don’t have any desire to write an ebook, however, but rather real books that are published on demand. I don’t know if I’ll ever find the time for that. Maybe I’ll just condense the three books into one and write them years from now when I’m not freelancing so much. But writing 40 or so articles per month right now is about as much as I can do.

    Cheers!

  70. Good goals and really achievable because you have a good track record for success. I will be blogging my goals soon as well, doing this makes it more of challenge to supersede. One of my goals is to exceed 5 grand in dividend income. Good luck Jason.

  71. AJ,

    Thanks. I hope I can achieve them as well. I think I can definitely get close. 🙂

    Keep up the great work with stock purchases over there. Not sure if I’ll be able to buy any more stocks until April. Depends on how my cash flow looks with tax season upon us.

    Cheers!

  72. DFG,

    Body fat % is a great way to track your health as well. I don’t worry about that too much since I already know my body fat is pretty low. Weight is generally a decent proxy for health, assuming your blood pressure and everything internal is in good working order. I’m not after building any more muscle than I already have, but I would definitely track that if that’s a goal of yours. I basically just look at my BMI and give myself a little leeway to account for the amount of muscle I carry.

    Cheers!

  73. I just want to offer a word of encouragement, “GOGOGOGOGOGOGOGO!!!”

    In 1998, I set a 10 year goal to be able to live off my investment income (I was fresh out of University.) I missed the goal but I “failed well.” On 5OCT2012, I left the corporate grind for good with roughly 37,000 in annual dividends. I pick up some extra by trading options for income. It is a pretty fat life and I never have to worry about whether I can afford to eat out or about, like tonight, joining old co-workers for beer and karaoke. I’m inspired to pick up some extra income while living my new dream of teaching others how to duplicate my success via a blog (which I finally started last weekend!)

    You can do it. You WILL do it. Respect, brother.

    -keith-

  74. DGJ,

    My projected forward dividend income was about $6,000. I look at that when factoring in the dividend income goal for the following year, though some of that income is obviously paid late in the year (the last quarter), where dividend raises and reinvested dividend income will be too late to effectively help with my 2015 goal. I think goal #4 will be instrumental in hitting the other financial goals. Dividend raises and reinvestment of income should get me about 10% of the way there, depending on how things go.

    Thanks for dropping by!

    Best regards.

  75. Steve,

    “However, when your invest-able assets reach a significant level (especially when already retired), it seems prudent to zero in on capital preservation and not just dividend income.”

    Couldn’t agree more. I plan to stay 100% stocks as long as it makes sense, even into financial independence. But that doesn’t mean I’ll be blind to risk and diversification within the portfolio. My long-term goal is to make sure the income is reasonably spread out between positions. If I can get the portfolio to the point to where the weights are between 1% and 4% across the board, I’ll be happy. I can withstand a 4% pay cut. An 8% or 10% pay cut, however, would sting quite a bit.

    Oil is very volatile and cyclical, so it surprises me sometimes how heavy people invest there. I don’t mind volatility now, but I’d mind it a lot more once I’m actually living off of my dividend income, especially where it concerns the income. I think the S&P 500’s energy weighting at under 10% is actually pretty appropriate, and that’s something I’m aiming for over the long run as well. I certainly wouldn’t want 20% or 30% of my portfolio exposed to a sector as volatile as energy. And especially not in retirement. That’s just me.

    I’m sure you’ll find the right groove that works for you. Volatility and risk should definitely be carefully considered as you go through this change in your life. Best of luck! 🙂

    Cheers.

  76. EL,

    I’m kind of putting my track record on the line here, as these are incredibly challenging. But I figured why not crank the difficulty up to the max? 🙂

    That’s a great goal over there. $5,000 in dividend income would be fantastic. I didn’t hit much more than that last year, so you’re right there.

    Good luck!!

    Best wishes.

  77. keith,

    Thanks for the support. I really appreciate that!

    That’s fantastic to hear your story. I like how you “failed well”. It’s like shooting for the stars and landing on the moon. You still got to outer space, right? 🙂

    Living a life without financial worry is the dream. It’s one I think we all share. Enjoy it. You worked hard for it.

    I hope to join you in the dream within the next decade. Keep a seat open for me!

    Best regards.

  78. My point exactly. Stretch goals in finance are good because just missing the mark puts you ahead just about every other runner in the race. Like I say on my own blog, “Devour your prey, raptor!”

    -keith-

  79. DM,

    NBC SN (SN = Sports Network) has their games a lot, if you can find / get that channel. Though my Caps games are usually on the local channel and not NBC SN. NBC usually carries a game on the weekend too. When the stations were bidding for NHL games a few years the word on the street is ESPN put in a bid of $0 because they believed, arrogantly so, that the NHL would just give them a few games. Well NBC has been buying up a ton of stuff and put in a lot – so they now have NHL, Olympics, some NFL, and Barclays Premier League in England.

    I hear that about wanting to look good because everyone else does!

    Also, goalies are always crazy. Definitely cut from a different cloth, I prefer wing / forward myself.

    – Gremlin

  80. DM i had 25K in div income in 2014 and would like to go up to 36K in 2015. this will be a s-t-r-e-t-c-h,,,

  81. Jason,

    One of the issues I have to address is where I want to allocate and I first need to think through the concept of capitalizing guaranteed income (pensions, SS, etc). If one depends solely on their investments for income, I think they need to be more conservative and have a decent allocation to bonds in retirement.

    If pension and SS income enters into the equation, bonds can be minimized and up to 100% of invested assets can be allocated to stocks (DG stocks in my case). That of course depends on the balance between guaranteed income and dividend income.

    In thinking of an income stream for retirement, I’m not sure that I view volatility and risk as being in the same category. I don’t mind volatility in a stock if it will reliably pay the dividend I expect it to pay. In my mind, risk enters the picture when a dividend cut is possible. Of course, a dividend cut will likely be accompanied by a loss of capital as the stock price drops. It seems then that the goal would be to select stocks based on their perceived ability to continue paying (and hopefully grow) the dividend. Thus my reason for focusing on CVX and XOM in the oil sector.

    Of course, there is that concept called “total return”. Considering the distinct possibility that I will be able to buy these two stocks in the future at a lower price, I am forced to contemplate trimming back my positions a bit with a future purchase in mind. This would of course have a detrimental impact on current income. I have many decisions to make I guess. A crystal ball would be lovely right about now.

    Steve

  82. DD,

    Nice job over there. You’re killing it. I’d be financially independent and then some with that kind of dividend income. I’d be probably be at the beach a lot more, I can tell you that. 🙂

    I hope you don’t end up suffering from OMYS.

    Best regards!

  83. Thanks Jason, yes, I have OMYS. In Sept 2016 I can get a roughly 50K per month pension so its hard to stop until then. But I will be 50 not 40. Better than most but you will get to FI 10 years younger than me. Anyway, thanks for the inspiration you give me and so many others!

  84. I am getting to my target annual income very closely, and seem on track by say 2018.

    I am however trying to maximize the tax-deferred accounts as much as I can. Since I am not sure whether I will either continue working somewhere, or simply do earn money in some other capacity where i earn 1099 income (like you do) after reaching dividend crossover point, I am going to put as much of the money in tax-deferred accounts as possible. That way, I wont pay taxes for decades. And I am also pushing myself to think of creating multiple streams of income.

    I am thinking more and more that I might end up earning the money I need from other activities, after I have enough in dividend income to pay for my expenses. Isn’t it funny?

    On the other hand, I might also have to start thinking about FI for other people in my household 😉 ( you might too 😉 )

  85. Steve,

    “Considering the distinct possibility that I will be able to buy these two stocks in the future at a lower price, I am forced to contemplate trimming back my positions a bit with a future purchase in mind.”

    That’s called timing the market. Selling a stock now to hopefully buy it cheaper in the future is a game that I think few people can play and win, and one that’s really not necessary to play in the first place. But I wish you luck if you decide to do that. I think the better game to play is simple diversification and averaging down if/when an opportunity opens up. Meanwhile, the cash flow is constantly building and growing. I think one the most attractive aspects of dividend growth investing is that you don’t really need to focus on the market as much. Sounds to me like you’re creating undue work for yourself. Just my view. I once heard a portfolio is like a bar of soap, whereby the more you handle it, the less of it you’ll have in the end. I’d just try to enjoy the shower if I were you.

    Volatility in oil can produce risk, if it causes stress to the dividend and/or the growth of it. I think you see so few companies whose revenue largely relies on oil with lengthy dividend growth records in existence precisely because of that volatility. It takes a massive company to deal with that volatility through diversified and integrated operations, although some major companies (like Shell) can’t always be reliable. A lot of cash and access to big credit helps as well. Dividends are paid in cash from cash. If you’re not producing the cash flow necessary to pay out the dividend, then you have to come up with the cash in other ways. CVX, for instance, produced negative free cash flow in FY 2013. The dividend still got paid, but you see some negative action with the balance sheet there. Long-term debt has more than doubled in just the last two fiscal years. Just things to be mindful of.

    Best regards.

  86. DD,

    You’re going to get a $50k/month pension? $600,000 per year? If you don’t mind me asking, why are you investing at all? Unless you meant per year. In which case, $50k/year from the pension and another $40k+/year from dividend income should be more than enough to live off of pretty much anywhere in the world. You’re on easy street. I wouldn’t stress about a thing, if I were you. 🙂

    Cheers!

  87. DGI,

    Right. The great thing about this strategy is that it’s flexible. Multiple types of accounts are accessible, depending on what kind of income you think you might need down the road.

    I think a lot of people are assuming I’m going to be blogging until I’m 80 years old or something, and that’s just not the case. I still want my dividend income to cover my expenses 100%+ by the time I’m 40 so I can do whatever I want. I definitely don’t want to be tied to a computer all the time. It’s a big world out there.

    One potential scenario is us living in Central America, perhaps even before I’m 40. It’s quite cheap down there and I’d become a resident by virtue of being married to Claudia. So we could live anywhere down there. Rent down in El Salvador, for instance, is like $200/month near the beach. Or we could live on the island of Roatan. I don’t even think we’d need the $18,000 per year, and that’s for both of us.

    But that’s what’s wonderful. Life is full of opportunities. A lot of different paths out there.

    Looking forward to seeing what life looks for you in 2018! 🙂

    Cheers.

  88. The best thing about reading your 2015 goals is how they are all attainable with effort and are outlined with specifics. Too often you read or hear about goals being set in generic and open ended terms such as, “I want to lose weight” or “I want to make more money.” While noble in essence the reality is that these goals are not defined at all. I can appreciate your goal list when you mention that you want to earn $7200 in dividends or stay below 180 pounds. These are specific goals with real numbers that make quantifying your progress that much easier as you set a real benchmark instead of some open ended generic goal.

  89. nice thought! i wish i could let go of all stress! yes, its 50k a year not a month for the pension.

  90. Good luck in achieving your 2015 goals. Your writing has really taken off since you left your other job and hopefully 2015 will bring you even more opportunities.

    my 2015 dividend goal is to exceed my spending by 3K with dividends from taxable accounts – reducing spending around 1K is part of the plan to get there.

  91. A good overall group of goals DM! Good luck on keeping your weight goal. People think that loosing the weight is the hard part, but it’s keeping it off for many years after you reach the goal that is difficult!

    Enjoy!

  92. DivHut,

    Absolutely. That’s all part of the SMART system. Not setting specific goals makes it almost impossible to quantify your progress. Setting a goal of “losing weight” means losing one pound got you there. Of course, that also wouldn’t have any major impact on your overall health.

    We’ll see how it goes. I’m excited to give it 100% either way. 🙂

    Thanks for dropping by.

    Cheers!

  93. weenie,

    Thank you very much! I’m excited to do a midyear updated in the summer. I imagine I’ll be behind, but the second half of the year should offer a lot of potential. 🙂

    Best of luck with your goals as well. We’ve got what could be a huge year in front of us!

    Take care.

  94. pacer45,

    Thanks so much. The writing has definitely taken off. I’m probably about maxed out with how much content I can possibly put out. Especially if I want to keep the quality up, which I do.

    Exceeding spending with dividend income is the name of the game. You’re there, my friend! I hope to catch up within the next decade. Make sure you eventually enjoy your money and hard work, though, through the time it can buy. The money has utility beyond just a portfolio balance. 🙂

    Best wishes!

  95. ILG,

    Thanks for the support! Agreed that sometimes just keeping the weight off is tough. For some that’s because it involves more than just an extreme fad diet, whereby you actually have to eat healthy and exercise for years. People don’t like hard work and sacrifice. However, my issue is more that it requires less heavy lifting because I tend to put on weight. Of course, there’s some calorie counting and jogging in there, but not doing a lot of weights will probably be just as instrumental. We’ll see how it goes. 🙂

    Thanks for dropping by. Good luck to you throughout the year as well!

    Take care.

  96. DM,

    Great goal list there – specific, not too many, but also very meaningful and all long term focused. I think you will be able to maintain 50% months, and really do well in months such as April, May and August – simply because there aren’t, from what I can think of, too many things that can go on during those months, maybe I’m crazy for thinking that!

    I hope you actually start the first month off with a bang too, to really ease the burden on the other months. We are in the thick of busy season and I’ve already been feeling the struggles of maintaining a blog while working 75 hours per week, with traveling. The damage it does to your mind and body can be unrepairable. I need to do a better job of balancing – writing, work, investing and exercise myself.

    Nice target of $7,200 – should be a good sort of stretch goal, but I’m sure you’ll know where you stand by mid-year! Great post DM, talk soon.

    -Lanny

  97. Hi Dm,

    Reaching 7200$ in dividends would be awesome! Good luck in 2015.
    I just read an article that 1 in 4 Belgians doesn’t have any financial emergency fund. If I would be in such situation I would have many sleepless nights… I rather cope with swinging stockprices.

    Cheers,
    G

  98. Hi Jason,

    Good set of goals, the last time I weighed 180 lbs I must have been 7 years old 🙂 I’ve deiced for 2015 to make a little cash also, I’m going to take some profits and finish renovating this house, sell it, buy another, but smaller and easier to manage, see what happens!!

    The tumbling Euro, copper, and oil price are making life here even cheaper, therefore nicer, the cost off installing central heating in this house is now half what it was 4 years ago, hence I’ll be doing that in 2015…So if you get a Divi increase in BHP this year, that was me!! I bought all that copper pipe 🙂

    Cheers,

    Dave..

  99. Hi, Dividend Mantra.
    Thanks for another great post and good luck on the goals. I’m still working on building the foundation for my website, so I don’t know that I’m going to be setting any SMART goals for myself this year. I’m hoping to be able to set aside some time every other day to focus on my blog. I’m not a very polished writer, so I’m going to shoot for quantity over quality at the start. Thanks again for the inspiration.

    Goosemann Jones
    Flight to Dividends Blog

  100. Hi DM

    Good luck on those goals. Those are definitely achievable goals for you in 2015.

    I’m actually hoping that you put in the fifth mysterious goal you would like to achieve in 2015. I think you are definitely bound for some surprises in a good manner so that will count as one of those goals that you’ve never really predicted but you have achieved them.

    All the best and take care.

  101. Jason,

    You made the point that I was trying to make, but didn’t. I’m the last guy that would think I could time the market. I won’t even try. My thinking is that in my quest to increase income, I acted in haste and perhaps overstepped logic. CVX and XOM have a huge allocation and I’m having second thoughts about that. The fact that I may very well have paid too much is also a consideration, but the balance in my portfolio is the biggest concern.

    If I decide to trim back, I’ll likely be more comfortable. It’s quite possible IMO that prices will come down. If that happens and my portfolio can handle a little more oil at the time, I could decide to make a buy. In the meantime, I won’t be so heavily exposed to that sector. The fact that trimming would reduce our income is a little torturous for me though. I’m going to think about it over the weekend.

    Steve

  102. Jason,
    Congrats on making 3 of your 4 goals last year… If not for your move and engagement I believe you would have made them all, but what fun is the time/accomplishment without someone to share it with. Your goals are pretty high this year… maybe higher than I anticipated for you but you are goal driven and realistic enough to not be set back by a near miss… so that is good as well. As a reader and dare I say “fan” of your writings… I do value the no fluff rule you have imposed on yourself. If you were writing fluff, I would not be a subscriber/reader/fan. There is enough of that out there already and I just don’t have the time or interest for any of that. I hope the travels to see Buffett and a possible trip to FinCon are inspiring &/or rewarding for you in your growth this year. While I am not likely to model your situation financially or otherwise it is very interesting to “see” your personal challenges and goals being aimed for. I am inspired by your methodology to work on my own goals towards a separate but different path of getting to financial independence. As an older traditional style worker, most of my savings is tied up in traditional style 401K and IRA savings while yours is mostly in taxable accounts. I envy your position in that regard as I will still have to pay taxes on the proceeds before I build something more akin to what you are building as I enter the more traditional retirement scenario. Had I started earlier in life as you did with the long term dividend growth investing in taxable accounts, I may have had the luxury of earlier semi or permanent retirement or as you like to call it… “financial independence” The tax-deferred growth in my accounts is nice but they do not allow for any income stream till I am at least 59 & 1/2 years old, whereas your path allows an income stream to grow each year and give you the freedom of choice/time we all really desire. Good luck in the year ahead from a friend on a similar but different path.

  103. Lanny,

    Thanks! I purposely focus my goals on just a few major themes that move me closer to the me I want to eventually be. 🙂

    It’s funny, but you picked a few months that will probably be among my most expensive. Our wedding is in April and then we’re traveling up to Omaha in May. So there will be some one-off expenses there for sure. We’re not planning on spending much for the wedding and the Omaha trip is partially pre-funded since I purchased plane tickets already. But there’s still some expenses I haven’t realized yet (hotel, food, possible rental car, etc.). We’ll see. But I definitely expect the second half of the year to be a lot better in terms of lower expenses.

    I know how you feel there with your schedule. I went through the same thing for years with the career and the blog and everything else. Definitely tough. Just do as much as you can do. Don’t burn yourself out. 🙂

    Appreciate all the support. Looking forward to what we’ll be able to do this year. You guys are doing great over there.

    Best regards!

  104. Dave,

    Haha! I appreciate you picking up some copper. 🙂

    Glad things are working out so well for you over there. It seems like life just keeps getting better for those of us willing to grab it and take control of it. I hope the plan works out for you!

    Cheers.

  105. Geblin,

    Appreciate the wishes of luck. I’m excited to try it on. I’m confident I can at least get close to $7,200. Even hitting, say, $7k would be a huge win in my book.

    That’s a shame over there. I don’t know what the stats are for Americans, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see something similar over here. I actually wouldn’t be surprised if it were closer to 50% or higher. I agree with you in that I wouldn’t be able to sleep very well if that were the case. And I know that because I was apprehensive and anxious about my financial situation for years, which is what led me to where I’m now at. I don’t know how some people just spend decades in dire financial straits with no plans of changing. I’m doing all I can to show another way. 🙂

    Best of luck with your 2015 over there!!

    Take care.

  106. Goosemann,

    Best of luck with the content production over there. I also focus on quality over quantity. At one point, I wanted to publish a new article every day here, but I knew the quality would suffer, especially with all the freelance writing I’m doing. I’d rather publish a few times per week, but keep the quality high.

    You’ll figure out the right mix as you go. 🙂

    Bets wishes!

  107. Mark,

    Wish I had secrets. My income is really nothing compared to what some others are doing out there, like Pat Flynn. The good news, however, is that I don’t need that kind of income to succeed. 🙂

    Appreciate the support. I’ll be reading about your goals over the course of the year as well. Looking forward to seeing how it turns out for us.

    Cheers!

  108. B,

    Thanks so much. I’m hoping to at least get to 90% on some of these. I made them about as challenging as I could.

    I did kind of have a secret goal to do some international travel, but it’s already kind of baked in. We’re gonna be heading down to El Salvador this year for Christmas, which will be my first time out of the country in many years. It’ll be interesting to check it out. The cost of living is quite low in some areas down there, so maybe some research will be in the cards. 🙂

    Thanks for dropping by! All the best for you and your goals this year as well.

    Best wishes!

  109. Zwieback,

    Thanks for the kind words. You’re right in that I could have hit my savings goal last year if I would have stayed on the straight and narrow, but I really have no regrets at all. Indeed, all the money and freedom in the world isn’t worth much if you have nobody to share it with.

    I’m glad you appreciate the writing. I could probably make more money with a different strategy, but that’s really not my aim. Money comes after inspiring people. The fact that I’ve earned money in the process of inspiration is just a gift. And I obviously couldn’t do it without readers like yourself, so thank you for that.

    As far as your situation goes, you may be more flexible than you think. You should be able to rollover your 401(k) into an IRA. From there, you can look into an substantially equal periodic payments. Not for the faint of heart or those that don’t like tracking amounts and paperwork over years, but it’s an option. There’s always options for those that are open minded and willing to think outside the box. Just something to consider if things at work become difficult.

    Appreciate the support very much. I hope we’re both a lot closer to our long-term goals one year from now. 🙂

    Stay in touch!

    Best regards.

  110. Ambitious goals on the online income. I think you can do it tho. So many times I listen to the smart passive income podcast by Pat Flynn and time after time people call in with their success stories increasing their online income. You definitely have the drive for it and work ethic. Looking forward to your 2015 posts and weight control. You only get fat once you are married lol.

  111. A-G,

    I’ll let Claudia know I’m done working out after the wedding in April. 🙂

    Appreciate the nod of support there. I’m working incredibly hard these days, but I’m also enjoying myself more than ever. I may have to check out Flynn’s podcast one of these days. He’s been incredibly successful over there.

    Thanks for dropping by.

    Cheers!

  112. Good luck with your goals. Quick question about saving 50% net income. I belive you mean after taxes. But do you include savings for retirement also?

  113. Jason,

    Great set of goals, very ambitious! I’m pretty sure you’ll hit your dividend goal, but for your savings and online income targets you’ll have to give it your all.

    It’s quite incredible to think that reinvested dividends and dividend raises account for 10% of 2015’s expected increase in payments. That’s a whole lot of growth you didn’t have to do a thing for except staying invested.

    Also, if you manage to make $36,000 after taxes from your online adventure (which in my mind probably feels like a hobby to you), you’re a prime example of someone who made it on the internet. Very inspiring!

    Good luck,
    NMW

  114. Great set of goals Jason! I’m confident you’ll achieve them.

    My goals for 2015 are:

    Keep my savings rate at 60%+
    -I’m budgeting for 62% but if I end up with anything North of 60 I’m very happy. 65% is probably the limit and that calls for some overtime. Those opportunities may or may not materialise.

    Receive 3650 euros (around 4200 USD) or more in dividends.
    – I should have little trouble achieving this (up 35% from 2014). I rather not put this bar too high. I want to avoid chasing yield. Also, Finnish (and many other European companies pay annual/semiannual dividends). If I buy European companies on the latter half of the year, the rise in dividend income will not be visible before 2016.

    Continue to diversify. Reduce risks by sector and country.
    -I’ve added several new positions in 2014 and one more in Jan 2015. My portfolio currently has 27 companies from five countries. I expect to end the year with 30 or more companies in my portfolio. If I add Nestle, then Switzerland makes it six countries.

    Let’s hope we get to allocate our (limited) capital with reasonable returns. The markets going up, up, up makes things more challenging.

    Br

    Jarmo

  115. Jason,

    Great set of goals. You will definitely have to push yourself, but they are all within your reach. I know that with some pushing, creativity, and growth of your income sources that will follow the hard work you have put in during 2014, you will find some new sources of income to knock $7,200 i actual dividend income out of the park. The tricky part will be growing that income at the beginning of the year so you can receive enough dividends from your new investments. I know you have it mapped out though!

    I am excited to follow your journey throughout the year. 2015 will be a great year for us all, I have a great feeling about it. So let’s keep at it, keep pushing ourselves, to achieve these SMART goals. And Jason, if worse comes to worse and you are looking like you might not hit the $7,200 in actual dividend income, I might suggest that https://www.dividendmantra.com issues a special dividend on 12/31/15!

    Bert

  116. A strong set of goals you set up for yourselves there, Jason. Especially the 25% increase in dividend income compared to 2014 is challenging I believe. But I’m confident that you’ll be able to pull it off.
    It’s also what I hope to achieve for myself for 2015. Let’s see what we bake from it… 🙂

    All the best.

  117. NMW,

    It’s going to be pretty tough. The dividend income and savings rate goals largely rely on me hitting the online income target. If I’m able to exceed $36,000, then I think everything else will kind of fall into place. I’m giving it 100%! 🙂

    I tell ya, I never imagined making a living online. It wasn’t even a goal of mine when I first started the blog. So the fact that I got here without really trying is amazing. I probably could have done better if it was an aim all along, but I’m perfectly content with how everything has gone. I’m incredibly happy with just being able to set my own schedule and write for a living. Being able to continue saving and investing is just icing on an already delicious cake.

    Keep up the great work over there. You’re doing phenomenal!

    Cheers.

  118. Jarmo,

    Excellent goals you have there. Love the savings rate you’re targeting. 60% is awesome. I consider a savings rate over 50% to be getting into the “extreme” territory, so 60% is obviously fantastic.

    The dividend income goal is very solid. I started to really feel the snowball rolling this past year. Seems to kind of start to hit a critical mass at around $5,000 or so per year. You’re moving along at a great pace.

    Keep up the great work. Looking forward to seeing where we both stand by the end of the year. I’m incredibly optimistic!

    Best wishes.

  119. Likewise, optimism is a nice benefit of building one’s Freedom Fund 🙂

    I agree. Anything North of 50% is really extreme. Still, pushing for 60+ is worthwhile. This early on my journey, it can be a tremendous advantage. Plus it can shave years of my accumulation period.

    I’ll keep in touch!

  120. Bert,

    Exactly. One of the keys to that dividend income goal will be growing the dividend income early enough in the year to really benefit from it. Later purchases in the fall and winter won’t make a big difference for this year. We’ll see how it goes. Like I mentioned, even if I miss it by a few hundred bucks, I’m okay with that. I wanted to put something out there really big and challenging, but even hitting, say, $7,000 wouldn’t be a disappointment for me. I originally figured I’d be somewhere between $6,000 and $6,500 this year, so I’m ahead of pace. The journey has just been incredible thus far. 🙂

    Appreciate all the support. I’m really looking forward to seeing where we all stand at the end of this year. I have such a great feeling about this year. It’s such a great opportunity to grow, save, invest, learn, and become better versions of ourselves. Let’s make the most of it!

    Thanks for dropping by.

    Best wishes!

  121. Jos,

    That’s great. Let’s see if we can both attain a 25% increase YOY! 🙂

    I’m optimistic that this is going to be the best year yet for many of us. It’s an incredible chance to grow our health, wealth, and knowledge.

    Good luck!

    Cheers.

  122. Hi DM,

    Wishing you all the best on achieving your goals this year, and I’m looking forward to reading your progress! Targeting to triple your online income target is awesome!

    Will getting married this year help with your tax situation overall?

    Keep up the great writing!

    Best wishes,
    -DL

  123. DL,

    Thanks for all the support. Really appreciate it. Can’t wait to see what’s possible this year for all of us. 🙂

    The tax situation might not change all that much. We’ll see. It’s possible she’ll put me in a lower tax bracket when we combine everything, but she’ll lose some benefits associated with being a low-earner with a child. It’ll probably balance out.

    Best of luck to you this year!

    Cheers.

  124. Dave,

    Appreciate the lurking. And I appreciate the comment even more. 🙂

    Looking forward to what the next year brings us. I feel like every day that passes is another day where I’m closer to my dream. It’s an incredible feeling.

    I hope 2015 works out well for you in regards to your goals as well. Let’s make the most of it!

    Take care.

  125. Today I started my new year plan with a purely emotional decision – perhaps my only one – by investing a token amount in a recently launched rupee denominated mutual fund dedicated to Japanese stocks.I m a terrific fan of Japanese culture and food (though I can speak Chinese who utterly hate Japanese .. haha).I would really like to spend some part of my life in Hokkaido,North Japan.
    Anyways, looking at Abe/Kuroda’s beggar-thy-neighbour currency policy, I do not expect to generate inflation beating returns even over the long term… it’s just a case of being connected to the place and hence feeling better !
    Cheers !

  126. Great goals, Jason, and especially goal #1 will be challenging. But, you’ve shown great acumen in achieving these kinds of goals in the past, so I look forward to seeing how you go about achieving this one. I’m fascinated by your goal #4 and hope that you’ll share more details on your online activities while tracking progress. Best of luck for 2015 and achieving your goals.

  127. Great goals DM.
    My K.I.S.S. goal for my dividends is to increase them by 10% per year. Nice and simple.
    I managed just over 29% increase in divs last year. I live in Canada so some terms may not be familiar to you. I max out my RRSP (similar to 401K) and TFSA (Tax Free Savings Account) every year (approx $20K) so that builds on princpal and therefore more equities which means more divs. All dividends within registered accounts get re-invested and so even more divs. I do very little selling, hopefully at a profit, and re-invest that as well.
    Aside from that I run a HELOC for investment purposes so all interest (approx $3K last year) on the loan is deductible. If I do not see anything to purchase then the divs from this go to reduce the HELOC until I want to add to any holdings.
    I will be transitioning to retirement this year so making that 10% may not be so simple as I will enter a fund withdrawal mode.
    Unfortunately here in Canada we can not talk about the 4% withdrawal rate within our RRSP/RRIF accounts. WIthdrawals are mandated by our CRA such as at 71 it is a minimun 7.38% that year and increases to 20% in your 90’s. The government wants their taxes back. So by the time you are 95 those accounts will be depleted whether you want to or not. The only accounts that do not have mandated withdrawals are the TFSA and any non-registered accounts. So if we want to live to 100 we have to have monies set aside in those accounts.

    As you invest in your accounts and re-invest dividends (or drip) the return rate will increase with the years making a nice bell curve. This is always encouraging to see as your returns accelerate with time.

  128. FerdiS,

    Thanks for the well wishes. I appreciate it! 🙂

    I have a pretty good record for goals, and I’m kind of putting that on the line here. The more I look at things, the less likely I feel it is I’ll hit many of these. My tax bill is likely to be large, which will drop net income substantially. Thus, I’ll have less income to save and invest. So all three goals will really depend on how much income I can generate online, which will in itself depend on how much I can write. As is, I’m writing 40 or so articles per month, which is probably about as much as I can do. We’ll see how it goes!

    Good luck with your goals this year as well. Looking forward to seeing how it turns out for us.

    Best regards.

  129. Ricardo,

    Wow. Those required minimum distributions are pretty heavy there in Canada! That’s unfortunate if you’re aiming for a very long retirement. We don’t face RMDs on certain accounts until 70 1/2 here in the US. I guess you simply have to plan around that.

    Best of luck transitioning to retirement this year. That’s a very, very exciting time. I can tell you from firsthand experience that spending more time home is simply fantastic. You’ll own your own time, which gives you plenty of opportunities to spend it however you want. Make the most of it! 🙂

    Best wishes.

  130. Hello Jason,

    Great set of SMART objectives! It looks like you have the right balance between achievable and challenging. I have to say that it’s extremely inspiring to see your dividend income grow and grow – $7,200 a year would be an incredible number, but I’m sure that you’ll achieve it. At this point the proverbial snowball should do a lot of the work!

    I have just started my journey to financial independence, with a current forward annual dividend income of about $120. I wonder how humongous your income will be by the time I reach $7,200!!

    Best regards, and keep rocking!

    Dividend Legion

  131. DL,

    Thanks for stopping by!

    We all have to start somewhere, my friend. I started with $0 in dividend income like most everyone else, but it’s amazing what’s possible if you stay consistent and persistent. 🙂

    Stick with it. I’m confident you’ll see $7,200 and much more if you do.

    Cheers!

  132. That’s some great dividend income progress you are showing DM. Even more impressive on the online income front! Congratulations and best wishes for 2015 in terms of achieving your goals.

  133. Integrator,

    Thanks so much. Really appreciate it! I’m profoundly grateful for the progress thus far. However, I also “knew” this was going to happen. I was completely confident right from the start that financial independence by 40 is attainable, so I just continue to put in the work necessary to bridge my present and future. 🙂

    I guess that kind of confidence goes a long way in regards to achieving big things in life.

    The online income, however, definitely wasn’t a goal or plan from the beginning. It’s been an amazing and wonderful surprise. I know a few people weren’t really keen on the idea of me writing for a living, but I’m so glad I made the jump. Life is very good.

    I hope all is just as well or better for you over there. It’s great to be cognizant of the gifts of life. And it’s also great to be an investor. 🙂

    Best regards!

  134. Really awesome goals DM! I’ve been a longtime reader and you’ve really inspired me to take control of my finances early in my life.

    Good luck on your goals for 2015! I’ll be cheering you on!

  135. Jason,

    Thanks for the kinds words! I will stay consistent, as it is the key to success at…basically everything! 🙂 I’m sure it’ll help that there is such a great community of FI / DGI bloggers!

    Cheers mate.

    DL

  136. free2retire30,

    That’s great to hear! I’m glad you’ve taken control of your finances. And I’m honored to have been a part of that process. 🙂

    You’re starting very early in life over there. That’s fantastic. You’ve got a seven-year head start on me, which means you should be able to reach your goal. Keep at it!

    Best wishes.

  137. Awesome 2015 goals especially on saving 50% of net income as well as achieving 36K on online income. I do have the same goal of achieving 50% of net income and not sure how it is going to turn out but I will keep striving!

  138. BeSmartRich,

    That’s a great goal to have. I think saving 50% of your net worth is imperative if you’re looking to become financially independent at a young age. Saving that much of your net income and investing it intelligently puts you on track for FI in about 15 years, starting from zero. So even getting a late start at, say, 30 years old means you could become FI by 45. That’s pretty fantastic. 🙂

    Keep striving. It’s easier than you think once you start cutting the fat and seeing the results.

    Best wishes.

  139. Regarding your “50% saved” goal. Do you consider the money you use every month towards dividend stocks as money saved? Just discovered your blog today!

  140. Definitely helps!

    If I may ask, where did you initially get your funds to start investing? Looking at your current portfolio is pretty intimidating for someone my age (24) who is currently living paycheck to paycheck. Where do I even start? Buying a few stocks every month when I can? I am using Mint.com to help with budgeting and saving. Thanks!

  141. John,

    Glad you stumbled upon the blog. Hope you stick around. 🙂

    Savings is the difference between net (after tax) income and all expenses. Generally, all of my savings goes to purchasing stocks.

    So if I net $3,000 this month and spend $1,500, I saved $1,500 for a 50% net savings rate. Usually, I would then invest that $1,500. However, I may have extra savings from a prior month or I may not invest all of that money in the same month it was saved. Invested capital oscillates a bit, but that’s the gist of it.

    I hope that helps!

    Best regards.

  142. John,

    I’d encourage you to read through the archives. I started with $5,000, which wasn’t much. And you can see that some of my earliest dividend income reports were just $30 or so. It takes time to get a snowball built and rolling. But don’t be discouraged. 🙂

    Here are some posts to help you get started:

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/about-me/

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/getting-started/

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2014/05/if-i-were-starting-all-over-again/

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2014/02/the-power-of-pennies/

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2013/03/dgi-case-study-5k-to-100k-in-three-years/

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2012/09/your-savings-rate-trumps-your/

    I have over 600 articles published here on the blog, so the archives might be a little much. But I think those articles will help.

    Best of luck!! 🙂

    Cheers.

  143. Pingback: My 2015 Goals - Scodub

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