Whether you're just starting out in your career, raising a family or getting closer to retirement, the goals you set for your financial life are the foundation of every money decision you make. Yet many Canadians haven't taken the time to define them clearly, and that gap between intention and action can be costly.

This guide breaks down what financial goals are, why they matter, and how to set both short-term and long-term targets that reflect the life you want to live, and why those goals need a financial plan behind them to become reality.

What are financial goals?

Financial goals are specific outcomes you want to achieve with your money over a defined period of time. They give your financial decisions direction and purpose, transforming saving, investing and spending from reactive habits into intentional choices.

Financial goals can range from the immediate and practical, like building an emergency fund or paying off a credit card, to the far-reaching and aspirational, like retiring comfortably or funding your child's education. What distinguishes a goal from a wish is that a goal has a timeline, a dollar amount and a financial plan behind it.

A financial goal on its own is a destination without a map. A financial plan is what connects where you are today to where you want to be, helping translate your goals into concrete, actionable strategies tailored to your unique circumstances. Goals and plans work together: your goals give the plan its purpose and the plan helps to give your goals a path forward.

Why setting financial goals matters

Here's something worth considering: only 12% of Canadians say their finances truly support the life they want.¹ Without the blueprint, even the right tools can get used in the wrong order for the wrong reasons. A financial plan takes your goals (whether that's paying off your mortgage, retiring at 62 or funding your grandchildren's education) and translates them into measurable, actionable strategies tailored to your income, timeline and risk tolerance.

This distinction matters because many Canadians equate financial planning with investing. But investing is only one component of a broader financial strategy. A comprehensive financial plan also encompasses day-to-day financial management, debt strategy, protection, retirement income planning, and tax and estate considerations, each tied back to the goals you've identified as most important.

Importantly, a financial plan isn't a static document. It's an ongoing process that evolves as your life does. The goals you set in your thirties will look different from the ones that matter in your fifties and a sound plan adapts alongside them. Research shows that Canadians who work with a financial planner are more optimistic, less stressed about money and feel better prepared for challenges like inflation and rising costs.¹

The starting point is always your goals — not the markets, not a product, not a generalized checklist. When financial planning begins with what you actually want from your life, everything else can follow with greater clarity and confidence.

Short-term financial goals

Short-term financial goals are targets you aim to reach within the next one to three years. They tend to be more urgent and immediately actionable than long-term goals, and achieving them builds both the financial foundation and the confidence needed to pursue bigger objectives.

Examples of short-term financial goals

• Building an emergency fund. We recommend to setting aside three to six months' worth of living expenses in an accessible account. This protects you from unexpected costs (e.g. a car repair, a job disruption) without derailing your longer-term plans.
• Paying down high-interest debt. Credit card debt and high-interest personal loans are among the most financially corrosive obligations you can carry. Eliminating them as quickly as possible frees up cash flow for everything else.
• Saving for a specific purchase. Whether it's a vehicle, a home renovation or a milestone trip, setting a discrete savings target with a deadline turns a vague desire into a trackable goal.

The key to successful goal planning is specificity. Rather than "save more money," a useful short-term goal can sound like: "contribute $300 a month to my TFSA for the next 12 months."

Long-term financial goals

Long-term financial goals look further out, typically five years or more into the future. They're bigger in scope, require more sustained effort and often reflect your deepest values: the kind of retirement you want, the legacy you hope to leave, the security you want to provide your family. Naming these goals, even before you know exactly how to achieve them, is the first step in working toward them.

Examples of long-term financial goals:

• Retiring comfortably. For many Canadians, this is the largest long-term financial goal of all. It involves determining how much income you'll need in retirement, how long that period may last, and what combination of registered accounts, investments and government benefits (like the Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security) can support it.
• Paying off your mortgage. Becoming mortgage-free is a significant milestone that dramatically reduces your monthly obligations and increases your financial flexibility in later years.
• Funding a child's education. The Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) is a powerful Canadian tool: contributions grow tax-sheltered, and the federal government adds Canada Education Savings Grants (CESGs) on top. Starting early maximizes both the compounding and the grant eligibility.
• Building generational wealth. Some Canadians set a long-term goal of leaving a financial legacy — whether to their children, grandchildren or a cause they care about. This requires deliberate estate and tax planning.
• Starting or growing a business. For entrepreneurs and small-business owners, building business equity is itself a financial goal. One that requires both personal and business financial planning to execute well.

Long-term goals tend to be more emotionally resonant than short-term ones, because they connect directly to your vision of a fulfilling life. Defining them clearly is what gives day-to-day financial decisions meaning. Again, the key is specificity. Rather than "I'd like to retire comfortably some day," a useful long-term goal can sound like: "I'd like to retire at age 62 and have an income of $60,000 per year in retirement."

Short-term vs. long-term financial goals: striking the right balance

One of the most common tensions in personal financial planning is the pull between the immediate and the eventual. Short-term goals can feel urgent; long-term goals can feel abstract. It can be tempting to defer the future until the present feels more settled, but for many Canadians, that moment of "enough stability" never quite arrives.

The good news is that short-term and long-term goals don't necessarily have to be in competition with each other. They can be complementary. Short-term goals can build the habits, the cash flow and the financial infrastructure that make long-term goals achievable. And long-term goals cam give short-term decisions their context and purpose.

A balanced approach might look like this: you're actively paying down credit card debt (short-term), while simultaneously contributing a modest amount monthly to your RRSP (long-term). You're saving for a home down payment in the next three years (short-term) while also opening an RESP for your newborn (long-term). Progress on one goal doesn't mean neglecting the other.

Research by Edward Jones and Gallup makes it clear that Canadians who engage in consistent planning behaviours across both time horizons are significantly more likely to feel fulfilled and less financially stressed.¹ The goal isn't to choose between short-term and long-term, it's to manage both with intention.

An Edward Jones advisor can help you strike the balance between short- and long-term financial planning.

How to set financial goals that work for you

Knowing you should have financial goals and actually defining them are two different things. Here's a practical framework for turning intention into actionable targets.

1. Start with your values

Before you name a single dollar amount or deadline, ask yourself what truly matters to you. Your financial goals should be an expression of your values, not a checklist borrowed from someone else's life. Do you prioritize security above all else? Freedom? Family? Community? Purpose?

This isn't an abstract exercise. Research consistently shows that people who align their financial decisions with their core values report higher levels of financial fulfillment, fewer negative emotions around money and a stronger sense of control.¹ Starting with values is starting with the right foundation.

2. Assess your current financial situation

Setting meaningful goals requires an accurate picture of your current financial position: your income, your savings, your debts, your expenses and your existing assets. You can't plot a course to where you want to go without knowing where you're starting from.

3. Make your goals specific, measurable and time-bound

A goal without a number and a deadline is just a preference. "Save for retirement" becomes a goal when it sounds like: "contribute $500 a month to my RRSP for the next 20 years." The more specific you are, the easier it becomes to track progress and adjust when life changes.

4. Consider who else is affected

Your financial goals don't exist in isolation. A mortgage, a family, a business partnership, a dependent parent — these relationships shape and are shaped by the financial decisions you make. Bringing a partner or spouse into the goal-setting conversation early avoids misalignment later.

5. Review and adjust regularly

Life changes — and your financial goals should change with it. A marriage, a new child, a job change, an inheritance: any of these can shift your priorities and your timelines. Making a habit of reviewing your goals at least once a year ensures your plan stays aligned with your life.

Not sure where to start with your priorities?

The MyPriorities quiz from Edward Jones helps you compare and rank what matters most to you — a meaningful first step before meeting with a financial advisor.

How a financial advisor can help you reach your goals

Setting financial goals is a deeply personal process, and having a knowledgeable partner alongside you makes a significant difference. Research by Edward Jones and Gallup found that financially fulfilled Canadians are about three times as likely to work with a financial advisor,¹ not because advisors guarantee outcomes, but because they can help translate values and intentions into structured, executable plans.

A financial advisor can help you:

• Clarify your goals by asking the right questions and helping you think through both the near-term and the long-term picture.
• Build a personalized financial plan that accounts for your goals, your income, your obligations, your risk tolerance and your timeline.
• Choose the right accounts and investment strategies to match each of your goals.
• Stay on track through market volatility, life changes and the inevitable moments when short-term pressures compete with long-term priorities.
• Revisit and refine your plan as your life evolves, so your financial goals continue to reflect what matters most to you.

This is exactly what Edward Jones' approach is designed to do. Step one of that process is understanding your values and goals (identifying where you are today, where you want to go and who else may be affected along the way). Everything that follows — exploring options, choosing strategies, implementing a plan and revisiting it over time — is built on the clarity that comes from that initial goal-setting conversation.

Connect with an Edward Jones financial advisor to start building a plan that reflects your values, your timeline and the life you want to live. Find a financial advisor near you.