It’s important to set income goals for your business, because you have to have targets in mind to know where you’re going. But it is so easy to get carried away with creating your business plan when building a lifestyle-focused business. Sometimes it feels like making money is supposed to be the only goal for your business. However, when you design your lifestyle business, you are trying to create a better life for yourself where life comes first and your business fits in as just one part.

The whole point of a lifestyle business is that you give yourself the freedom to work when you want to, fitting it in around the life moments and experiences that are important to you and your family.

Yes, money helps you build the lifestyle, but the lifestyle is more about experiences than it is about money. But the fact is, money makes everything better, so of course you should design your business so that you earn enough money to live the lifestyle of your dreams. But income goals aren’t everything.

Here are a few thoughts to consider when creating your income goals:

More money does not equal more happiness

Even though many people will be a lot happier with more money, if you’re not happy outside of your need for more money, having the money won’t suddenly make you happy. Money can buy a lot of things and ease the way but having it won’t fix the other problems in your life.

More time creates more space for creativity

We’re all creative business owners here, and one thing I’ve noticed is that when I’m only focused on making money and meeting those elusive income goals, the creative energy takes a vacation.

Something amazing happens when you design your business and your life to consider your time freedom. When you allow yourself the space to not focus solely on the money, your creative energy comes back with more force. At least that’s how it works for me.

And then, going forward, when you can be the idea person and then turn a project over to your team, the type of business you can build is truly unlimited.

Time Freedom Helps You Avoid Burnout

If you’ve ever worked a standard 40 hour a week job, you know that it’s entirely possible, even with a strict 40-hour workweek, to suffer burn out. It’s not even about the work. It’s really about the lack of time freedom in your life. If you have nothing but work to look forward to, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and burn out.

Life is About More Than Making Money

One problem sometimes with making money is the time it takes from your real life. Making money isn’t really your real life. Spending time with your family, friends, and loved ones is real life. Going on a hike in the mountains is real life. For me, being able to go play golf whenever we can get a tee time is real life. Taking your kids to the park for a beautiful afternoon and having a picnic without worry that you won’t be able to pay for those things is real freedom.

Yes, money is needed. Just ask anyone who is trying to buy a house or pay down a mortgage in this market! But you probably don’t need as much as you think to enjoy the lifestyle you want to live.

Final Thoughts

Money can really help you enjoy your life more because you’re not worried about how to pay the rent or put food on the table. So, don’t think money is evil. It’s not. Money is fabulous, but it’s not more important than your time. To strike that balance between money and time freedom, the income goals you set need to take the rest of your life into consideration too.  

Additional Reading:

How to Set Income Goals for Your Small Business

The Ultimate Guide To Setting And Meeting Income Goals As A Freelancer