Ever wondered: What's the most important money question?

13 Mar 2017

The most important money question is: "Why is money important to you?"

What's most important to you should be the reason for your financial decisions. You have to know why you're planning. Simon Sinek has a simple but powerful model for inspirational leadership all starting with a golden circle and the question "Why?" His examples include Apple, Martin Luther King, and the Wright brothers. Watch him here.

Carl Richards - a frequent keynote speaker at financial planning conferences events around the world - tells readers that getting to the bottom of "Why?" is "potentially scary territory" and that it's helpful "to set up a few guard rails" to make the process productive.

So, before you ask "Why?" do the following:

1. Set aside time. Avoid late nights or the end of a long week. Rather, pick a time when you'll have more energy.
2. Get out of the house. Having a specific place can serve as a reminder that these conversations can be emotional, and can help you prepare for that. For the same reason, keeping conversations about money in a place where you go to relax.
3. Let go of the past. If we approach the process with the right frame of mind, reflecting on our mistakes may help us avoid repeating the same mistake in the future. But, at a certain point, you need to make peace with what's happened in the past and move on.
4. Adopt a no shame, no blame attitude. We all have made financial mistakes in the past, but by adopting a no shame, no blame attitude, we can reframe mistakes as valuable lessons. Over time, they'll lose the emotional charge.
5. The purpose of asking ‘Why?' isn't to come up with specific goals or plans of action, but it's meant to reveal the REASON why you have certain goals. Give yourself time to pause and really think; by doing so, you can go even deeper, getting much closer to what's important.

Richards reminds readers that the best financial plan has nothing to do with what the markets are doing and everything to do with what's important to you.

No two plans are the same (that is, it's not one-size-fits-all) and that coming up with the right plan is a process. Creating a financial plan is one of the best ways of giving yourself something that everyone wants more of: time! It's about being really honest about where you want to go, getting really clear about where you are now, and then making your best guesses about how to narrow the gap between the two.

Our integrated wealthcare approach is based on your personal priorities and aspirations. This process is designed to give you a clear course of action for pursuing your goals that span various time horizons and life stages to empower you to do extraordinary things with your wealth, both now and in the future.

I look forward to talking with you again soon.

Regards,

Shane Thom, CFP^® GTP(SA)™
Managing Partner: Integrated Wealthcare Advisor