Every morning since returning from our trip to Lisbon I’ve re-read a copy of our five year plan to myself. I sit and go through every line (even though I know them off by heart) and I have to say as far as getting focused goes, it’s working…….I feel really motivated right now…..it’s like I start every day with renewed purpose.
I’ve been on trips to Portugal before and I always come back motivated, but this time it feels different. It’s like I really know that it’s going to happen. One day we will actually be living in Portugal. The dream will come true.
Of course there’s a lot of living to do between then and now…..I don’t want to wish my life away……so breaking down our ultimate goals into a plan for the next five years is great. It keeps us moving forward, but living in the now.
Here it is, our current 5 year plan:
2011 (Progress)
Complete UK house renovations– moved to right before we move- Fully fund a ‘First 6 Months Abroad’ Fund (£6,000) – £4,223
- Fully fund a NY 2012 Travel Fund (£4,000) – £2,259
- Mortgage balance – savings target is below £90,000 – completed
2012
- Save > 50% of our net income
Complete Manhattan travel goal (2012)moved- Fully fund a Portugal & NY/Washington 2013 Travel Fund (£5,000)
- Our mortgage balance is below £85,000 by December 31st
2013
- Save > 50% of our net income
- Fully fund a Portugal & NY Travel 2014 Travel Fund (£5,000)
- Our mortgage balance is below £60,000 by December 31st
2014
- Save > 60% of our net income
- Fully fund a West Coast USA 2015 Travel Fund (£5,000)
- Our mortgage balance is below £35,000 by December 31st
2015
- Be earning > £500 pm in alternative/passive income
- Our mortgage balance is below £15,000 by December 31st
- Our mortgage balance – savings = zero by December 31st (stretch goal – mortgage free)
- Complete Amtrak West Coast travel goal (2015)
- Rent out our UK house
- Move to Portugal!
This plan is still very fluid, we may move earlier if M gets a job, but for now we’ll keep ticking away, being as frugal as possible and working towards our goals.
Do you have a 5 year plan?
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
Wow! You are so motivated. I love how organized you have gotten your goals. I am definitely taking a cue from you!
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movetoportugal Reply:
October 17th, 2011 at 6:27 pm
Thanks Niki…if only I’d been a little more goal focused in my twenties!
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Well, I have a three year plan but love how you’ve broken your plan down year by year. Perhaps if I do that and look at it each morning then I can stay motivated too!
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movetoportugal Reply:
October 17th, 2011 at 6:26 pm
It does work Jane..although I think you stay pretty motivated anyway
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I haven’t used my old m.o. of major goals in the last couple of years. But I’ve missed having them for sure. My major problem is that I’m not even sure what my “ideal life” looks like – or where (geographically) that is right now. Or I do know, but it’s sort of expensive.
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movetoportugal Reply:
October 17th, 2011 at 6:25 pm
Oh Jacq do tell?!
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Must work on my 5 year plan….it’s a bit scary!
Sft x
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movetoportugal Reply:
October 18th, 2011 at 6:22 am
Do it! I’d love to read yours!
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I don’t have a 5 year plan but I think it is a good idea and one I should work on.
Gill in Canada
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movetoportugal Reply:
October 18th, 2011 at 6:21 am
Hi Gill!
Good luck
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At first, my 5 year plan was just to pay off my mortgage, but this post really has me thinking. There has to be MORE.
I’m going to work on one this week and post Friday!
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movetoportugal Reply:
October 20th, 2011 at 8:20 am
Mike, it’s always something that I’ve questioned: finding balance. For us it’s being really frugal with the day to day things, buy spending on holidays! Good luck deciding on a plan!
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May I ask why you want to move to Portugal?
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movetoportugal Reply:
October 20th, 2011 at 8:21 am
Hi Sandra
We love it there: the people, the climate, all with the added benefit of being fairly close to family in the UK
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Hi Laura,
I discovered your blog via Rachel’s Small Notebook. I was very intrigued with the blog’s name – move to Portugal. I’m portuguese, from Lisbon, but I live in the Algarve. One of my dreams (I don’t know if I can call it a goal yet) is to move to Switzerland or Norway (outside the european union, but in Europe). The financial crisis here is getting bigger and bigger, and the right wing government is making things even worse. We’re not as bad as Greece yet, but still, things aren’t that good… We have very nice things in Portugal of course, like the climate and the food, but people are getting more frustrated every day with the financial situation. Anyway, I’m a positive person and I’m sure things will get better! Where in Portugal would you like to live in? The most common destination for tourists is of course the Algarve, but there are many other wonderful places here! Well, I wish you all the best and this 5 year plan makes sense – I’ve never done a 5-year plan, but now maybe I will. I’m going to browse the rest of your blog now!
Rita
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movetoportugal Reply:
October 23rd, 2011 at 3:33 pm
Hi Rita and thanks for stopping by. We love the Algarve, but have our hopes set on living in the Lisbon area.
Do you mind me asking why Norway or Switzerland…..although they are both beautiful countries
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Rita @ the busy minimalist Reply:
October 23rd, 2011 at 4:06 pm
Hi Laura,
Norway or Switzerland just because, besides being beautiful countries, they don’t belong to the European Union and they are rich countries… The truth is, the euro was a very bad thing to poor countries such as Portugal and Greece…
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Hi Laura,
Greetings from a friend across the pond. I’m glad to see that your dream is closer than ever.
When you are ready to travel to NYC, let me know — there’s always the chance I’ll be there myself, either for business or to see my dad. Would be nice to say hello again.
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We had an 18 month plan- but with my job being unstable we changed it. We now have like a 2 year plan. But dollar amounts that we need are not set.
My Hubby just likes to spend freely- which is why he won’t help me nail down any goals. He thinks he should be able to do what he wants and I should be able to work around him and still accomplish what I want. Ugh!!
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