Dr. Nicholas E. Michels, CFP®
Michels Family Financial recommends five easy steps that will help you build a solid financial foundation for now and in the future:
- Begin with the end in mind
- Understand your starting point
- Create your plan
- Put your plan into action
- Monitor and repeat
Schedule Checkups
It’s normal to be concerned with the fluctuating financial market. Michels Family Financial encourages you to schedule
checkups with your financial advisor just as you would with your doctor. Michels Family Financial will discuss the importance
of reviewing your objectives and goals of your financial portfolio. Together we will list key examples of targets that you
may want to include in your financial planning. For example, saving for an emergency fund, planning for
retirement, paying down debt, or purchasing a home.
Evaluate, Understand, and Plan
Once you have considered your major (and minor) end goals, you need to take the time to properly evaluate and understand your current financial status. After gathering all personal financial data, you will need to discuss with your advisor about having the right asset allocation, especially during times of market volatility. They suggest putting your excess cash to work and rebalancing your portfolio to help you succeed in asset allocation.
Michels Family Financial encourages you to schedule a face-to-face meeting with your financial advisor
to discuss your situation and create a plan. You should come prepared with questions, priorities, and concerns. This will help your advisor to determine the best wealth-planning tools to assist you. We recommend that you consider different scenarios, including asking for a projection of your retirement savings, to determine if you are on the right track.
However, all the planning in the world does not matter unless you take action and continue with wealth planning as an ongoing process. Consider an annual review with your financial advisor. You can discuss taking action in ways such as increasing your savings every year, paying down more debt with each paycheck, saving ahead for large purchases, and watching your spending levels. Even an action as small as packing your lunch for work or canceling forgotten subscriptions will help keep your financial plan in motion, so you are ready to take the next step during your next annual review.
The views expressed represent the opinion of Michels Family Financial. The views are subject to change and are not intended as a forecast or guarantee of future results. This material is for informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice and is not intended as an endorsement of any specific investment. Stated information is derived from proprietary and nonproprietary sources that have not been independently verified for accuracy or completeness. While Michels Family Financial believes the information to be accurate and reliable, we do not claim or have responsibility for its completeness, accuracy, or reliability. Statements of future expectations, estimates, projections, and other forward-looking statements are based on available information and the Michels Family Financials' view as of the time of these statements. Accordingly, such statements are inherently speculative as they are based on assumptions that may involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Past performance is not indicative of future results.