Planning – to achieve your dreams and goals…

In a rare night off from parental duties, my husband and I took ourselves off and talked about all the things that we hadn’t quite got around to discussing over the last six months.

When we have the time and energy we will often talk about our plans for the future, our hopes for our family, the places we would like to travel, the experiences we would like to share.  However we never quite manage to get to the nitty gritty of the conversation and talk about how we achieve these goals.  To do that we have to have the slightly more tedious conversations e.g. pensions, savings, protecting our family in times of uncertainty. The issues that you know you have to think about, the things that you will sort out next week when you have a bit more time and are less tired.  We can often put off thinking about these matters because our busy lives get in the way, but if we want to enjoy the wonder of all the possibilities that the future can hold, can we really afford not to think about them?

With the summer holidays out of the way, now is a perfect time to reflect on your finances, consider whether they are in order and whether your monies are invested in the best possible way.  A fine opportunity to consider saving, taking advantage of your new ISA allowance, and ensuring that your monies are working hard for you.

There is also no better time to undertake a health check on your pension.  Retirement planning is vital to ensure that you can enjoy your retirement to the full. I don’t want to worry about having to work into old age because I can’t afford to give it up.  Nor do I want to spend my retirement worrying about how I will pay the bills or being deprived of the opportunity to take the holidays that I have been planning for oh so very long.  If I am ill, I want the ability to access health care without recourse to NHS waiting lists.  I want to secure my future and therefore I have to take a dose of my own medicine and ensure that these ‘more tedious conversations’ work their way up my list of priorities.

Therefore my resolution is going to be to look after my financial future and I hope yours will be the same. Maybe then those rare nights off can be used to discuss the more exciting parts of putting plans into action!

If you require any assistance with financial planning issues, we at Prosser Knowles can guide you through these matters, providing you with practical reasoned and independent advice.  We pride ourselves in looking after our clients, who trust us to look after them.

To request further information or to book an appointment please click here to request a call back from one of our advisers.

Written by: Vanessa Coates – Financial Planning Consultant, Prosser Knowles Associates Limited