Planning Pays Off
Super Bowl XLVI is over and we can certainly be proud of Indianapolis. The world has a new perception and a deeper appreciation for our City. Our Host Committee set their goal for the event, planned for all contingencies, and implemented completely. Planning is the key to achieving personal goals as well.
Since the initial bid was made in 2007, the Host Committee and its army of volunteers has worked tirelessly to plan for this major event. The goal was to host a successful Super Bowl, but the means to accomplishing this had to consider all potential roadblocks. You start with the best situation and then you plan for the worse. Once the plans are in place, you implement. As the event unfolds, you revise your strategy to compensate for the unexpected and put the event back on track.
Revising Personal Plans
Planning for your life is the same. You set your goal, you decide upon your plan of action, and you implement. Unfortunately, with any situation in life, the unexpected can happen at any time. Sometimes good things happen, but bad circumstances can also arise.
Planning for positive impacts is easy. In most cases, your goals get completed early. For example, let’s assume that one of your goals is to save for your child’s college education. You determine the amount that you must save each month and you start accumulating funds in a college 529 savings plan. Then you receive “sudden money”, such an unexpected bonus or inheritance. This gives you the opportunity to complete your college funding goal more quickly. The good events generally make it easier to accomplish your goals. But what happens if the impact is negative. A poor investing environment may impact your college fund negatively. To make up for the lower investment return, you may need to revise your plan and add more money than you originally anticipated.
Revising your plan to make up for a negative impact can put your goal back on track, but it may also create a chain reaction. Saving more money for college may impact your ability to fully meet other budgeted spending or to save for your own retirement. The consequence of one revision, may be that other goals need to be revised or adjusted.
Contingency Planning
It is hard to anticipate the revisions you need to make in your plans when something in the environment changes. However, a good plan will include solutions for major issues that you certainly don’t want to occur, but can happen. Contingency plans generally include insurance. Insurance can provide a means of allowing your overall financial plan to continue on course even if disaster does strike. Homeowner’s insurance can replace your residence in the event of extensive damage, saving you from needing to rebuild with your own funds. Auto insurance can replace or repair your vehicle when an accident occurs. Life insurance and disability insurance can replace income if a wage earner dies or becomes disabled.
A comprehensive financial plan includes planning for contingencies that you hope will never occur. But if they do, you can keep your family plan on track with only minor financial adjustments.
Implementing Actions to Accomplish Goals
The only way to realize the benefit of your planning is to diligently implement the actions you have determined will allow you to accomplish your goals. Planning without proper implementation will yield very unsatisfactory results. Actively implementing the plan and constantly monitoring will allow you to accomplish your goals.
There is nothing more gratifying than achieving a desired result. Getting your child through college, saving for a new home, retiring with a comfortable lifestyle are all goals that you can accomplish with proper planning and diligent implementation.
Summary
Just like the Super Bowl Host Committee, we can create our goals, plan our actions, consider the contingencies, implement the plan, and revise as necessary. With drive and diligence, we can accomplish our goal. Even if our dream is something as big as the Super Bowl!
