1)Tip of the Week: Save Before Investing.

It’s guaranteed to be there when you need it. To invest your money is to take on the risk of losing that money. When you invest your money without saving first, it’s like building your house on a weak foundation. If financial storms - such the economy or your investments go sour – your financial future is at risk of falling apart.


Start early, Save First, and allow time and compounding to aid you in building a healthy retirement nest egg. Once you have got money being saved, feel free to look at investing.

 

2)Tip of the Week: Save Before Investing.


If you are like most people, you have dreams for the future. The possibilities are endless - buy your forever home, take a travel year, complete your first marathon, serve overseas, start or grow your own business, pay for your children’s education, leave your grandchildren a financial legacy. The options are endless, because our dreams are endless. What are your dreams?


Mark Twain once said, “20 years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”


I think we can all relate to looking back on our life and wishing we would have followed a dream or had the courage to try something new. I know I can.


And I also know that I do not want to look back on my life 20 years from now and feel disappointed by more goals and dreams I did not accomplish. Do you?


Here’s one way that will help you look back in 20 years and say, “I did what I was hoping to do! I achieved what I wanted too!”


That one thing is this: Write Your Dream Down!


Dreams stay dreams until they are written down. Once they are written down, they become achievable goals.


Answering these 4 questions realistically will help you begin achieving more of your dreams.


  • What is my Dream?

  • By when do I want to accomplish this?

  • What do I to do need to accomplish this? or if your goals need money: How much do I need to accomplish this?

  • How am I going to feel when I accomplish this?


Put the dream by your bedside, on your fridge, the bathroom mirror - anywhere where you will see it every day.


Do this and watch your mind change. You’ll start thinking about how you can save money for your goal. You’ll start planning your action steps.


It’s hard to plan without knowing the end goal, the destination.


Write Down Your Dream. Look at it daily. Progress will come!


As a financial guide, I always encourage people to do this with their families. It’s much easier to plan, to structure their finances appropriately, to use the proper financial tools and to make the most of their money, if they know what they want for themselves and their families.


If you don’t know what you want, what’s important to you, what your goals are, how can you structure your finances in the best way to help you do what you want - to reach your future goals? Every goal needs a different action plan.



3)Tip of the Week: Write Down Your Goals


Parents, do you save for the needs you’ll have in the future? I’m not just talking about retirement, although that’s a very good reason to save. I’m talking about the costs of having more children, or the costs of buying a larger house as you outgrow your current home, or the costs of groceries as your kids get older, or the cost of extracurriculars your children want to join.


All these things cost money, and often these extra expenses can hit our wallets hard if we aren’t prepared.


I think we can all agree as parents that we want to provide well for our children, and to give them opportunity. It may look different for every family, but I believe most parents are always wanting the best for their child.


Be prepared for these upcoming expenses by including them on your Goals list!


In my last tip of the week we talked about a simple way to achieve more of your goals and dreams. Adding these upcoming expenses to your list of Goals that Need Money can help in making wise decisions now, so that you can accomplish the goals you have for your family, later.


Many of us do not save enough for our future selves. Rarely are we saving enough to provide ourselves a healthy retirement, never mind being prepared for the costs of growing families. We live in the now and spend our money on the immediate, leaving ourselves unprepared for the future. And this is why the average Canadian has a $1.78 of debt for every $1.00 they make.


Let’s start preparing now and pay ourselves first. A good rule of thumb is to pay yourself 10% or more of your income. If you’re over 35, it should likely be higher. Let’s be ready for the extra costs that come up in our lives and stop going further into debt. It’s easier to pay yourself and to limit immediate spending when you know why you are paying yourself, why you are saving. Write down what you are saving for, including future needs.


If you haven’t been paying yourself first yet, that’s okay. Now’s the best time start. Start at 1% of your income until you get used to it, and then increase it. Start the process and move forward.


Add your future needs to the goals you are saving for and start helping yourself get there.

 

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