Why do people take things, which they can’t afford to buy? Back in the olden days, in order to walk out of a retail establishment carrying a shiny new possession, you had do exchange monetary tokens with the shopkeeper. Nowadays, in our fancy modern hell, we’ve decided to dispense with this age old concept. Instead we’ve opted to go for a “oh sure, you can pay me whenever” approach. I think this approach is lacking the simplicity and elegance of the old solution, although I’m sure that the debt recovery industry is thriving as a result.
So, how exactly has this shift in attitude towards money come about? An element of our society that is largely responsible for this paradigm shift is undoubtedly technology. With our increasingly sophisticated electronics, powerful computers have become tiny, and commonplace. With much of our banking infrastructure now taking place in an electronic realm (as well as an alarming amount of our social interaction), money transfers are instant, and managing debts is just a case of juggling imaginary numbers in pixel land.
Unfortunately for the digital circus, even the super-clever boffins at the banks, who are paid preposterous sums of money to wiggle their fingers around in mine, have trouble with these virtual theatrics. Case in point: the cataclysmic recession-apocalypse, which is currently ravaging our country. Luckily, they’ve got a safety net a big fat pay out from yours truly! Perhaps we, as a country, should hire a debt recovery agency and return the favour.
Let’s think about what is included in a comprehensive financial plan. There is a section on what happens in case you died today. Will estate taxes be due? Does your estate have liquidity? Another section outlines what happens in case you become disabled or need long-term care. Have you saved for retirement? And how will you pay for your kids’ or grandkids’ college schooling?
What about charitable giving, income tax savings, and investment allocation? Anyone can write a financial plan, or at least it seems that way. You can consult your banker, go to a brokerage firm, or hire anyone who calls himself or herself a financial planner to prepare a plan for you. Financial planning basically is not that complicated, right? The first place to start is selecting the right person to create a financial plan. Find anyone with a fiduciary responsibility such as a Certified Financial Planner.
It is important to seek out anyone who will listen to your objectives and design a plan to meet your goals. Be definite the person you pick to draft your preliminary financial plan is familiar with how the planning you do in area affects outcome in another. For example, what you do in the area of investment planning can affect your tax planning. What you do to provide for asset protection can affect your estate planning, and so forth. A sound financial plan ought to also address the way you are expected to behave when placed in a variety of scenarios. You can also visit www.finlit.com to get more info.
The only certainty in life is that the unexpected will always happen. When placed in an unexpected situation, most people will tend to make major decisions based on emotion, and then try to rationalize them, undermining their long-term planning. Therefore, a solid financial plan ought to be flexible to accommodate the unexpected.
This is true in the investment-planning arena. It is important to have a written investment owner statement to help protect your portfolio from unplanned and impulsive revisions of sound long-term owner. in times of market turmoil, investors without an investment owner statement are inclined to make investment decisions that are inconsistent with prudent investment management principles–and their best interest. You can also get info about finlit.