What’s important about money?
One of the toughest aspects of embarking on the financial planning process is recognizing how your personal style, money mindset, and life situation might affect your financial and investment decisions. Look back to what money was like for you when you were a child. Did you get an allowance? Did you know what your parents earned? Was money even discussed around the table? Many times how you were socialized with money when you were young dictates how you view money and use it as an adult.
Money is still a very emotionally charged topic. Taking time to review the questions below before you meet with a CFP might help you to clarify what money means to you and assist you in being better prepared to discuss your financial planning concerns and financial goals. (If a spouse or significant other is going to be involved with the planning, discuss these questions together.) Although this is not an exhaustive list, starting to look at your money mindset might be a beneficial process!
- What do I do with my money?
- If money was absolutely not an issue, what would I do with my life?
- Has the way I’ve made my money – through work, marriage or inheritance – affected the way I think about it in a particular way?
- How much debt do I have and how do I feel about it?
- Am I more concerned about maintaining the value of my initial investment or making a profit from it?
- Am I willing to give up that stability for the chance at long-term growth?
- What am I most likely to enjoy spending money on?
- How would I feel if the value of my investment dropped for several months?
- How would I feel if the value of my investment dropped for several years?
- If I had to list three things I really wanted to do with my money, what would they be?
- What does retirement mean to me? Does it mean quitting work entirely and doing whatever I want to do or working in a new career full- or part-time?
- Do I want children? Do I understand the financial commitment?
- If I have children, do I expect them to pay their own way through college or will I pay all or part of it? What kind of shape am I in to afford their college education?
- How’s my health and my health insurance coverage?
- What kind of physical and financial shape are my parents in?
- Is philanthropy important to me?
- What legacy do I want to leave at my life’s end?
CCMI provides personalized fee-only financial planning and investment management services to business owners, professionals, individuals and families in San Diego and throughout the country. CCMI has a team of CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERTM professionals who act as fiduciaries, which means our clients’ interests always come first.
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