Financial Planning - Where to Start

One of the best journeys to embark on in life is the financial planning journey. The moment you decide to include financial plans into your daily routine, you would have simplified the journey. It can be very hard to start the financial journey but this journey could one day lead you to a destination called financial freedom. Here are the six best tips to help you plan for your finances accordingly and set a pace for financial freedom;

1. Repay your debts - One of the key aspects that may easily impede your financial plans is a personal debt, especially credit card debt. The personal debt might start at a small level but it might soon grow into a huge debt because you failed to reduce the debt on a regular basis. Planning for your finances means you have a good plan and settling your personal debts should be the first objective on the plan. The key advantage of repaying and reducing your own debts is that it allows you to save the money and invest for the future. In addition, your living costs go down because you do not have further debt repayments to undertake.

2. Start making investments - This is a crucial principle. Financial planning means you are saving as you plan for the future; hence, you will possibly use your current cash to purchase long term investments. Some of the areas you could invest in are bonds, the stock exchange, and many others. If you save your money with the help of financial management and proper discipline, you will certainly be able to grow your nest egg.

3. Set goals - Research shows that many people do not save because they lack goals for their future. With no goals in place, nothing will motivate you to defer current spending and save for a brighter future. Take your time to create concrete goals, which could be a new car, a new house, a vacation, or perhaps a change of career.

4. Spend less than your earnings - It is easy to understand this principle but hard to implement it. This is because most people purchase new stuff and want the greatest and latest phone, television set, etcetera without pondering about the long-term repercussions. However, if your expenditure exceeds your earnings, you cannot make head ways financially. To add insult to injury, a large score of folks actually  spend more than their earnings and fund the same using personal debt. This is not sustainable, at all. It will simply end up badly, which brings us to the next tip.

5. Know where your earnings go - Many people struggle with budgeting yet this is a crucial financial concept. If you do not know where the money is going, you will hardly save. The moment you know how you spend your income, you will be able to influence all your spending. You should create a record of all incoming money and any expenditure. At first, it can be hard to achieve this, but it will get simpler with time. It is after you know where the money is going that you will be in a position to make priorities in your expenditure and make sufficient savings for your future.

6. Save before spending - Before you pay your normal bills, purchase groceries, or carry out any other thing, set aside a portion of the income. Do not forget the rule of thumb to pay yourself first. You can start small by say setting aside 5 to 10 percent of your monthly earnings. You can then raise your savings over time. Nonetheless, it is important to know that savings are not adequate unless you channel them into feasible investments.

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