Set Good Financial Goals
- Make sure they are SMART – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timely. Using this method means you’ll be more specific and use fewer excuses.
- Write them down, people who have a set financial plan that they are sticking to are proven to feel and become more financially secure.
Create An Action Plan
- Look at your goals individually and put them in order of importance.
- Assign a price to them so you know how much money you’ll need to assign monthly to achieve them.
- If any of them now seem too much, re-look at them to make them realistic. For example, allow more time for saving for a deposit or look at ways to reduce your monthly expenses.
- The key is to make them easy and attainable so you will stick to them. You’ll make more progress with a written “Baby steps” plan than if you do nothing.
- Use historical data and online calculators to set realistic projections of future costs. Things like retirement calculators and children’s education fee calculators.
- Be realistic about the stock market over the next decade in that analysts project growth is highly likely to be much slower.
- Relook at your final plan and see if there are any tough contributions and reduce them. In the same vain see if there are any you feel you could easily increase but make sure you keep them easy or you won’t stick to them.
Make Quarterly Commitments So You Keep To Your Plan
- Making a quarterly list of financial commitments is a good way of ensuring you stick to your plan long term.
- Q1: Portfolio review – have previous gains or losses altered your risk tolerance and asset allocation? Do things need rebalancing?
- Q2: Insurance – Are your house, car, life, critical illness and health insurances all in place, sufficient to protect you and your family and the best value policies?
- Q3: Taxes – What taxes are you paying and where can you adjust things for more efficiency? Also, are you putting enough aside monthly so you’re not hit with any nasty surprises?
- Q4: Estate Planning – Do you have a will in place? Is it up to date? Are the beneficiaries up to date in both your will and various policies?
If you would like a complimentary review speak with an expert today.
