​Every great accomplishment had a sound strategy behind it. Winging it might spice up your life, but having no plan is a recipe for disappointment. Great feats are achieved as a result of people knowing what they want and why! 

​Think about your favourite professional sports person or business super achiever.  Do you think it’s possible that he or she became successful without first setting up a target and then taking aim?  Not likely. 

​One rainy afternoon in 1940, an inspired 15-year old boy named John Goddard sat down at his kitchen table in Los Angeles and wrote three words at the top of a yellow pad, "My Life List." Under that heading he made a list of everything he wanted to achieve.

​In the words of that celebrated US Philosopher, Elvis Presley, “we need a little less conversation and a little more action please”.

Many people avoid going to the dentist, because they expect it to be painful.  You might know what I mean. That cracked filling - we never get around to doing anything about it until the darn thing falls out.  Or even when faced with the choice of enduring a ‘sometimes’ sore tooth for several months versus going to the dentist, we generally try to ride out the bad tooth in the hope it will get better! And how does that work out for you? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Picture your first years in retirement.  Things are going great.  Days spent playing with the grandkids, sunny mornings on the golf course and leisurely walks on the beach.

However, if you are like many of our clients, you are relying on the sale of your business to fund your own version of nirvana.

The problem is that you are not exactly sure what you will get for the business, or even how long it might take to sell.  This can be a little scary for some – there is after all a lot riding on the outcome.

With interest rates virtually nothing, reverse mortgages may be the lifeline that cash-strapped retirees need right now.  But, proceed with caution.

In a previous blog, I talked about 5 things that we can learn from happy retirees. One of these 5 was to honour something known as the ‘rich ratio’.  I’ve had a couple of requests to dive a bit deeper with this so here goes:

Any of these sound familiar?

• Ignore it. The problem will go away.
• I have enough time before the exam, I'll start studying tomorrow
• The grass is greener on the other side.

​And how did that work out for you?

When it comes to your financial plans, do you do the same?
​
Let's have a look at what these assumptions could be costing you.

It's easy to understand why retirement doesn't loom large on the horizon for 20-somethings. Young workers are more concerned with kick-starting careers, not ending them in the long-distant future.

​And in your 30’s, there’s probably extra mouths to feed and debt to reduce.

​“So what do you do?” the cardio surgeon asked.  It’s an innocent enough question, but it turned out to be loaded with philosophical importance.  

His eyes lit up when I said financial planner.