Following on from my last blog Financial Planning 2015, many clients were struggling to know where to start. So I went back almost 25 years to a couple of courses I went on, to try to help with the goal planning process.
It’s really hard to plan
When it comes to planning your future, it seems that everything is so intangible. Many of us want:
- Two good holidays a year.
- To drive nice cars.
- To set the kids up.
- To own a really good suit.
- To own a diamond.
- To climb that mountain in South America.
- To learn to fly an airplane.
All very common dreams but not one of them an actual goal. It’s hard to accurately voice our goals, because not many people have ever asked us what they were before.
Even you have not dared ask you.
So tell me what you want, what you really, really want.
Goal Planning the Smart Way
So let’s break a goal down and make this simple. Fortunately there is a simple Mnemonic to help us. Goals have to be S.M.A.R.T.
To qualify as a true goal, your objective should be:
- Specific – A place, a brand, a make and a model.
- Measurable – A holiday duration, the number of carats.
- Assignable – How much will it cost.
- Realistic – Forget climbing Machu Piccu if you are scared of heights and flights.
- Time-related – specify when the result(s) can be achieved. New cars every 5 years. Fly solo by age 55.
So get dreaming. Get adding up and we will add your personal goals to our Cash flow modelling tool. Let’s see if you can do everything you want in this life.