“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, the next best time is today.”
Apparently that quote is attributed to quite a few different people but the point as it relates to today’s article is will the future you appreciate what the current you is doing or not doing now?
How many times have you thought to yourself I coulda, shoulda, woulda done this thing a long time ago and if I had I wouldn’t have to deal with this issue now? But you didn't and now you're having to live with the consequences. We can’t change the past, but we can do things that can change our future.
That happens a lot when it comes to financial planning, retirement planning, estate planning, because quite frankly no one really likes to think about them not being here one day or its considered so far into the future that it can be put off.
Everywhere, every day some family experiences the results of decisions that were put off and put off until it’s too late. As this year begins to wrap up, think about the things you wanted to get done to better manage your current and future financial life and get started on working on those now. They don’t need to wait to be a new year’s resolution.
Should you be buying more life insurance? Should you be working on updating your will and trust documents? Maybe you did one a long time ago and it's outdated. Perhaps you haven't started one yet.
Maybe you haven't really stepped back and looked at your retirement planning or the rate of your contributions into your retirement plan.
You're making some contributions to your retirement plan but will those contributions reasonably help you meet your future goals?
While we cannot predict the future, there is some simple math that can be done to give you a ballpark idea whether you're going to be able to achieve your goals or not. For example, if you want a million dollars in your retirement account when you retire and you only have $50,000 now and you only expect to work another 15 to 20 years it’s not complicated math to see that you might need to get some serious financial planning going on quickly.
I can help with retirement and tax planning and life insurance, other areas require other professionals such as experienced trust attorneys. If you do not have a team of professionals around you, start gathering them now. I’m happy to pass on referrals if I know someone that might fill a need you have.
The future you, 10, 20, 30 or more years from now will be very happy of the actions the current you did to make their life or those they left behind much easier.
As always feel free to reach out to me at matt@vwshi.com, 808-954-6402 or schedule an initial call at
https://calendly.com/matt-csats/initial-consultation