Financial planning is a way to begin stacking the odds in your favour by creating a plan for your future.  The vast majority of Americans only seriously begin planning for retirement when they are 5 to 8 years away from wrapping up their working career and most are not sure how much money they really need.

A proper financial plan establishes goals to work towards and allows advisors to go deeper with client discussions.  The basis of financial planning is money management, reducing debt and growing wealth.  It is also necessary to have your advisor set up a personalized plan for insurance needs, taxation and business or estate plans.

Your advisor will want to review your income and spending, setting up short-term and long-term goals.  Financial planning enhances the probability that you will achieve your goals and often keeps you on track when life gets messy and unpredictable.  A good financial plan will help remove your stress about the future and can ensure you retire comfortably when you finally stop working.

Christine’s Tip:

Try to recognize the leaks in your finances.  Eliminating the mindless spending is one of the easiest ways to find extra money to save without sacrificing.  Once you change the way you think about money, you will find that you are more apt to keep it.  I know that temptation happens, and we can easily fall prey to an impulse buy or succumb to consumer marketing.  But if you really want to trim down your lifestyle, you most likely already know what expenditures are non-negotiable and those that you can reduce or eliminate to save more. 

Remember, being happier won’t come when you make more money, get that promotion, or make that big purchase.  Happiness is a daily mindset, and money is for long term security not just for luxuries and conveniences that you feel you deserve.  It is not any one overindulgent expenditure on its own that creates a problem, but rather the gradual increase of unnecessary costs that pile up over time and make your lifestyle too expensive to maintain, let alone save for a future.