Financial Future Planning Month

Turns out October is also the month for planning a path for a better fiscal path for your future.  Now, if I am being totally honest with you all, you have to know that planning for retirement was never something that I even considered I had to be concerned about until my husband had his double-bypass surgery followed immediately by an infection cocktail of 5 different bacterial and viral parasites that almost banded together to take him away not once, not twice, but three times.  So, you see, we never had money and never thought for  a need until that day almost 18 months ago.

Deciding to discuss this topic meant that I would have to become an adult (Ahhhhhhh!!! The horror!) and face that neither my husband nor I were in the position, or state of mind, to do any good to take of ourselves.  I started this post the same way I imagine that I start all things that are oblivious to me...Hellooo, Google!

Now, the first couple results weren't exactly helpful (this is the internet after all), but I read on to the next few and decided to pick one and run with it.  I chose an article published by Forbes.com on February 27, 2014 titled "7 Steps To a Better Financial Future". (it can be found here).

The contributor/writer of the article is a Doctor of Jurisprudence/Juris Doctor (JD) and a Certified Financial Planner (CFP).  In a nutshell what this means is that he has a doctorate degree in law and has spent some time learning about how to manipulate law and money.  So well that he can provide you with an educated guess on the best way to spend/save/invest your money and so you will have some when you're ready to retire.

Now...this article says that the "7 Steps" (without boring the hell out of all of us) are...

1.  "Know What You're Saving For"
     - basically, dream big for your retirement but remember to take care of the realistic stuff along the way
2.  "Make Sure Your Saving Goals are SMART"
     - your goals should be 'S'pecific, 'M'easureable, 'A'chievable, 'R'ealistic, and 'T'rackable
3.  "Find Ways to Reduce Your Expenses"
     - get rid of unnecessary or wasteful expenses 
4.  "Create a Budget"
     - to 'make sure your spending reflects your priorities and values
5.  "Pay Yourself First"
     - put your money away before you have a chance to spend it
6.   "Consider Escalating Your Savings Overtime", and
     -  if you can't afford a large amount now, start small and build as the other bills are paid off 
7.  "Stick to the Plan."
     - stick to your spending targets or you could end up in debt

The article is not a long article and parts of it may open up to things that you hadn't thought of ( I know it did for me).  

Remember the old adage...

"A Penny Saved Is A Penny Earned"

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