What’s on yours: A trip around the world, or maybe a vacation home in the Caribbean? What about a financial list? Do you have one? Your financial list will be unique to you. Let’s take a look at a few things that may be on it:
- Owning a home
- Living debt free
- Paying for college – without using student loans
- Retiring without having to stop living
- Traveling without incurring debt
The list could go on and on. As with any goal you may have, effective planning is the key to success. Here are a few ground rules to consider as you create your plan to accomplish the things on your financial wishlist:
Establish small, attainable goals.
If you want to retire at age 65, with $1 million in savings and investments, you need to create monthly goals today to get you there. How much can you save each month? How much debt do you have and what’s your plan to repay it? Make your goals meaningful and allow for time to review them each month. Adjust where necessary – but keep them top of mind.
Assess your plan periodically.
Revisit your plan at least once or twice a year to make sure it’s still what you want to do. It’s also an excellent time to determine whether you can put more resources toward your goals – maybe deposit more money into a savings or investment account, or pay more on your loan each month. Patience, consistency and review will help you check off all the items on your wishlist.
Be flexible.
If your circumstances change, be willing to update your plan. If you’re saving and investing $1,500 per month and you’re laid off, can you maintain saving that amount each month? Let’s say you just got a promotion at work – can you invest more money or use that increase to pay down debt? Is the rate of return on your investments where it should be to meet your goals? Your willingness to adapt and adjust to the changes in your circumstances will help you check off each item on your list – and possibly sooner than later.
Start today to prepare to check off your financial wishlist items. At BancorpSouth, we have both savings and investment products to help you achieve those goals. Give us a call at 1-888-797-7711 today. We’re ready to help you move in the right direction.
© Fintactix, LLC 2017
