The #1 reason people wait TOO long to begin financial planning
WRITTEN BY: Gideon Drucker, CFP® AIF® ECA
A few weeks back, I saw a quote from one of my favorite financial planning gurus, who, when talking about the reason that EVERYONE should have a financial plan, responded,
“Well, because I would rather be vaguely right than precisely wrong.”
Read that again: “I’d rather be vaguely right than precisely wrong.”
This defines financial planning.
When we first start working with clients on creating their Financial Life Plan®, we do so knowing full well that there are going to be unexpected life events that will change the plan assumptions as well as the plan outcomes down the road!
We know your life will not pan out exactly as you lay out during the course of our onboarding process.
Life hardly ever goes exactly “to plan.”
Unfortunately, a lot of people never create their financial roadmap because they figure they’ll never have ALL of the information necessary to be “precisely” right (which is true) and so they throw the baby out with the bath water…they never even get started and lose out on the peace of mind and confidence that comes from being “vaguely right”!
Another appropriate expression: “Perfect is the enemy of good.”
I’ve seen people get so bogged down about their plan probabilities or obsess over their plan assumptions that they paralyze themselves and are unable to actually make the financial decisions necessary to improve their standing.
In their quest for 100% certainty, they miss out on becoming 30% better today than they were yesterday.
As evidenced by the fact that you’re receiving this email, you likely understand that in a life of uncertainty:
- Being “vaguely right” is the marker of success.
- Getting on the right track is the benchmark.
- Getting even 10% more financially secure with each passing year is a home run.
So, if “the plan” is just a starting point, an ever-evolving mechanism, why is it so important to have one guiding your financial behavior?
Because when your life evolves:
- You get married and have kids sooner than expected
- You get an exciting new job opportunity
- You decide to move across the country
- You need to help out your folks with their financial affairs
We will ALREADY have the financial blueprint in place and the work becomes just about updating and adjusting the plan rather than frustratingly starting from scratch with each new development.
Financial planning, and my team’s role, then becomes about making modifications to something that already works rather than re-inventing the wheel with every passing year.
Simply put, we are your GPS.
We will help you understand how the minutia of your life affects the ultimate destination you’ve hired us to reach.
To wrap up, I guess what I’m saying is this: making a right turn is a heck of a lot easier when you’ve already gotten in your car and started driving!
When you have a plan in place, then you've done the hard part…you’re in the car.
Our promise is to always keep you on the road!
As always, please be encouraged to reach out and schedule your 15 minute Right Fit Call if you have any questions about creating your own Financial Life Plan®.
