5 days to planning your financial future!

“What am I trying to accomplish with my financial life?” “What legacy do I want to leave for those who come after me?” In order to answer such questions you must know the status of your financial life and furthermore, how you’d like to grow your financial life. For some, this can be a rude awakening. For others, it can be an enlightening experience. No matter the emotion revealed, it is critical to understand your financial health, just as it is to understand your physical health. Neglecting either can cause stress and prevent satisfying health and wealth. We’ve been taught that we should have regular check-ups with our healthcare professionals, to stay healthy and live long active lives, but also to prevent life threatening instances. The same practice should apply to your financial health. You should conduct periodic check-ups to attain financial stability and security for your future.

You can start to conduct financial checkups, in five days or less, by following these steps:

DAY ONE: Set goals related to your current financial situation, as well as, goals that represent how you would like to see your finances in the future.

Some people want to get out of debt, make more money, stop living paycheck to paycheck, free-up money for month’s end, and save for retirement or college. Regardless of what it’s for, you must start with a specific goal because without a goal, you don’t know what you’re working towards. Take the day to think about your financial goals, especially as you make financial transactions throughout the day. Do you feel good when you make those purchases? If not, what will make you feel better about making that purchase? Should you be using that money for something else? Should you set goals for your spending? Saving? Retirement? Emergency fund? Insurance? College planning? The answer is YES!

DAY TWO: Write down goals and objectives, in an organized way, and visit them at least once a week.

Some take this simple, yet disciplined, approach for granted, citing frivolous excuses, like, “I forgot” or “I am going to do it tomorrow or when I have more money to work with.” In the end, these are the same excuses that will keep you in the same situation you’re trying to escape. Individuals with goals are more successful than those without goals; individuals with written goals are more successful than those with goals who don’t write them down. In order to accomplish our goals, whether financial or not, we must become disciplined in writing them down, giving them life in some physical form. Some people create vision boards, write on index cards, post-it notes, etc. Whatever the medium, it’s important to take your goals from thoughts to pen and paper.

DAY THREE: Lay it all out on the table! Write down all important information from statements.

Here’s the fun part! You must face your fears and reveal your holistic financial situation. Pulling out ALL statements, letters, and any financial related documents will shed light on the current health of your finances. Note all balances owed, credit available, interest rates and terms, monthly utility bills, monthly income and expenses, due dates and extension dates, insurance policies, will or trust documents, saving and checking account balances, investment account balances, etc. I understand that this may be a daunting experience, especially if you have neglected your financial health, however, rely on faith and find comfort in knowing that you have taken the first step to create a better financial life for yourself. You must see it through if you want to achieve the goals and objectives you wrote down in the previous step.

This day is just like visiting the doctor, which I recently did for an annual check-up. However, its been quite some time since I’ve had a thorough physical check-up. There I was sitting in the office thinking of every little ache and pain, groan and moan I had, worried if my sugar levels were good and if my cholesterol had worsened…if my heartbeat was normal and breathing was steady. I thought of every negative thing and didn’t want to go through it. However, I knew that in the end, the benefit would outweigh the cost. The cost being the anxiety and embarrassment that comes with finding out if my health had worsened. I knew I hadn’t been exercising regularly and eating too many fried foods. At that moment, I wish I hadn’t.

We do the same thing with our finances. We do things we know we shouldn’t, like unnecessary or binge shopping, succumbing to instant gratification and saving little to none of our income. Then, when its time to assess the damage we caused, it’s difficult to endure. Natural, but preventable. By facing your fears and finances, you address your weaknesses head on, learn the status and if its all good, no worries. On the other hand, if it happens to be that one bill you intentionally avoid opening every month, then, take it easy, but OPEN THE ENVELOPE! Leave the emotion at the seal! Look at those numbers, assess the damage and write it down. Then, move on! Don’t dwell in it. There will be plenty of time for that, when we devise a strategy to address the critical financial situations.