Women who want to improve their finances can get started by following a simple, five-step process, says Mark Singer CFP®.
A woman who is feeling confused or overwhelmed by her financial situation can follow this simple process to gain more control over her financial life, says Singer. While the steps can be particularly helpful for women in transition (including those who are recently divorced or widowed), virtually anyone can benefit from completing the process. The five steps are:
- Make the time. Financial planning needs to be a high priority. It's important to dedicate a certain amount of time (whether it's an hour or day) to basic financial planning tasks so that you are in a position to achieve your goals.
- Paint your picture. To accomplish your goals, you need to visualize where it is you want to end up and how you want to get there.
- Put a plan in place. Once you've established what it is you wish to accomplish, put it in writing. Hiring a financial planner can help you do this. A planner can help ease the burden of your day-to-day decision making and enable you to focus on the other areas of your life.
- Become financially organized. After you've created your plan, it's time to get organized. Becoming better organized will put you in more control of your finances and make it easier to deal with all your financial data.
- Enjoy your life. Now that you have a plan in place and are financially organized, it's time to enjoy the journey that you are on. Step back and take a proper perspective on what you're accomplished in life. Part of the joy of having put together a successful financial plan is that you know that you are taking care of yourself and your family.
Mark Singer is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional and the author of The Changing Landscape of Retirement—What you don't know could hurt you. He has been The Retirement Guide to thousands of investors for close to 25 years and is the creator of the Retirement Roadmap and the Financial Organizer System, both of which contribute to a solution to investors' greatest concerns—properly coordinating their financial affairs.