Ric Edelman: Hi! I am Ric Edelman, the number one independent financial advisor in the nation, according to Barron's.

In this video series, we are talking about setting and achieving goals. Sometimes the hardest part about accomplishing a goal is figuring out where to start. Let's say, you set a goal, a big one that will take a lot of time, a lot of money, like walking the entire Appalachian Trail or completing a college degree. Big goals can make you feel a little intimidated. Where do you start? Well, you start the same way as if you were eating an elephant; you just take one bite at a time. When you have a really big goal, break it down into smaller goals. Say, you want to get a college degree; you can't get one today but you can request a course catalog. So give yourself one small assignment today. Order that catalog and then reward yourself for accomplishing that goal, and then give yourself another goal like selecting the course. Reward yourself when you accomplish that and then keep going. Set a goal for saving money and you will end up figuring out how to do it by taking big goals, shrinking them to little goals. For example, with college, another goal would be registering for the class and then selecting another class and so on. Any big goal can be broken down into lots of little goals. Every step will get you closer and closer to the ultimate destination. And making small accomplishments helps you stay motivated. So instead of worrying how you will ever get there, you will feel good every time you cross a small goal of your list. Before you know it, you will be half way there, then three-quarters and then all the way there. The only way for that to happen though is to start with a single step. Take that small step today and another one tomorrow. Eventually, you will have eaten the entire elephant.