One of the problems when discussing wealth creation and retirement planning is that it usually involves words rather than numbers. People say they want to ‘build a retirement nest egg’ or ‘make sure I have enough to live comfortably’ or ‘pay for my kids to go through private school’, but rarely are accurate numbers attached to those wishes.

Here are some ways to help you set great and realistic financial goals – and achieve them.

Setting goals starts with prioritising what’s important to you first, and then what you want in the short, medium and long term. Sit down alone and write these things down. It can be a clarifying process that focusses you on what’s important.

“Until you look at the real numbers it’s difficult to come up with realistic goals or a solid financial plan,” says Laura Baker, Senior Financial Planner at AIA Financial Wellbeing.

“You need to be able to assess what you can afford and what you need to do to make your objectives a reality.”

The starting point is to get a solid understanding of your own cash flow and think about the future and how that will impact cash incomings and outgoings.

In order to figure this out, check how much your savings account is growing by each month. If it’s not growing then that’s the first problem. Then record all of your spending each month over several months to find out exactly how much is going where.

Now you need to figure out what spending is essential and what is non-essential, and where you can cut back in order to give yourself a greater chance of achieving goals.

Next, write down short-term, medium-term and long-term goals, each with financial figures against them. Then prioritise each of your objectives. Using your knowledge of your current financial position, your current available cash flow and your goals, the picture of how you make those goals reality should become a lot clearer.

The next challenge is getting a better understanding of the savings and investment opportunities. Read articles about saving smarter, for example, and investment strategy media articles to improve your financial literacy.

A goal that seems unattainable can suddenly become far more realistic if you’re aware of various tools that are in place to help you get there.

“Setting a savings or investment goal and achieving it, isn’t always as simple as it sounds,” says Baker. “I have many clients come to me with financial goals and they aren’t sure how to get there. We’re about keeping it straightforward, avoiding the jargon and supporting clients by putting clear steps in place to help make their dreams a reality. For me, there’s nothing better than helping clients see what’s possible.”

Once you’ve set your goals, it’s important to keep tracking how you’re progressing as you may need to make small changes as you go along, and as life changes.

Talking to a financial planner can help you understand your situation and make confident financial decisions (big or small) so you can get the most out of life.