Planning & Monitoring

The new year is always a good time to sit down and plan what you want to achieve in the rest of the year. As a financial planner, I help people with wealth accumulation so they can gain financial independence and enjoy their lifestyle.

But unless you are lucky, wealth accumulation won’t happen by accident. It requires planning, setting goals and monitoring.

Planning and Monitoring

80% of new year’s resolutions have failed by February. Why? Most people make the resolution and just hope it happens. You need to set targets for it and monitor how you close you are getting towards achieving it on a regular basis. To start, you need to write down:

1. What do I want to achieve?
2. When do I want to achieve it by?
3. What do I need to do to achieve it?
4. How often do I need to monitor it?

For most financial goals, you should monitor it the same frequency you are paid i.e. monthly if you are paid monthly, fortnightly if paid every 2 weeks etc.

What have you done in the past?

To help you get started, look at what you did in the past. Most people have saved for a deposit on a house or for a new car, things you really wanted. What did you do to make this happen? Not go out, reduce how much you spend on non-essential items. How you save money hasn’t changed. If there is something you really want, then you have to do the same things all over again. That is when we get to how much do you actually want it to happen? Are you will to forgo eating out every week so you can go to Australia next year?

How good are you at sticking to plans you have set?

Some people are great at setting their mind to something and achieving it. Others less so. With financial goals being so long term, it can be difficult for some to maintain financial discipline over the long term. You may need to be accountable to someone else. If you have a shared goal with someone, you don’t want to meet them each month and tell them you haven’t saved anything while they have been putting money away.

Where do you find challenges in planning & monitoring?

Where do you find it difficult to plan and monitor? And what do you need to do to overcome these challenges?

1. Do you find that you are spending too much, not leaving any money to save? Cut off your access to cash then. Keep a limited amount in your bank account and leave your credit card at home.
2. You don’t monitor your progress? Put it in your diary and make it a non negotiable task that you have to do every week or month.
3. Having difficult saving? Automate your savings so money comes out of your account just after payday. It becomes a bill on direct debit.

If you have any questions, you can contact me directly at steven@bluewaterfp.ie