Tag Archive for: financial planning

Star or supporting part?

Put it this way, if there was a movie made of your life, would you be playing a leading role or a supporting part? By this I mean are you making the decisions that determine the overall direction of your life, or it is some other party like a spouse or boss? Don’t get me wrong, this is not a recommendation to act like a dictator. I simply mean that if you do not have clearly defined goals and plans to achieve them, then you are working to help someone else achieve theirs.

Believe it or not, it is not that hard to do. You can start small and work up. What do you want to achieve tomorrow, next week, next month and next year. Then describe in vivid detail what your long term goal looks like once it has been obtained. Have your big goal firmly in mind even while working on your short term goals.

If your goal is to be in fitness cover model shape then missing your workouts and eating double cheese burgers may not be in your best interest.  If you are in sales and your goal is to qualify for the company trip then you must make the calls. As well if you want to get out of debt then you must be keenly aware of how much money you have coming in and how much you have going out and to where. Then sit down and see if there are opportunities where you can increase your income, and cut expenses if possible. If you would like help developing a plan to help you eliminate your debt as quickly as possible, please feel free to contact my office. I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers,

Pat

p.s- You can find me on Twitter,Linkedin, Facebookand friendfeed.

The importance of Timing

You may, like others think that timing has nothing to do with your overall success, however I believe this is not the case. If you think back to some significant events in your life, either positive or negative, timing played a part . Don’t get me wrong I don’t think that it has everything to do with your outcome, but it definitely plays a part. The harder you work, more opportunities will come your way and the better your timing seems to be. Things just seem to happen when you want them to happen, and that is because you are focused like a laser on your desired end result.

Here are just a few examples that come to mind. Normally I write my blog posts at night and post them first thing in the morning, however last Friday I decided to write and post in the late afternoon. What happened was surprising, normally I get a few hundred hits per article, this one got 33K hits. I did not do anything different other than post in the afternoon rather than the morning. I chalk it all up to timing. Another on a personal nature, on May 11th 1993 I switched shifts with a co-worker at the YMCA Halifax where I was working as personal fitness instructor at the time.  I had done it before and did not think anything of it, however this time the result was different as I ended up meeting my wife. Their loss is my gain. Also this time last year AIG (American International Group) was quickly on on the way of becoming a penny stock, then the government intervened and and today it closed at 48.56, if you bought this time last year, then you had great timing!

Now you may be wondering how this all is relevant to finance? Well in the world of finance, the prices of stocks are constantly changing, as well as the foreign exchange markets and the yield on bonds. It’s this last item that will be important to you, as the yield of bonds determine the rates on most mortgages. Normally I do not talk about mortgage rates on my site, however it is important at this time as they have fallen to a point that you should be paying attention. If you are a home owner or plan on being a homeowner, the timing is great for you. Current 5 year fixed rates are now below 4% and variable rates start at 2.5% *(for those who qualify). A homeowner with a mortgage, a car loan, credit card or other loans could save hundreds or more each month by taking advantage of the current rates. Please contact my office if you have any questions. I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers,

Pat

p.s- You can find me on Twitter,Linkedin, Facebookand friendfeed.

Change Please!

Every once in a while you meet one of those people who needs help but can not seem to get out of their own way. I met one of those people yesterday. After analysing their current situation we discovered that what they were currently doing was not getting them the results that they wanted. Which is actually a simple and painless process. After discussing several options we recommended one that would help them meet their needs and put them on track to achieving the goals that they told me about. Done deal one would think, however that was not the case. I learned a long time ago that you can not force square pegs into round holes, so no amount of convincing was going to win them over.  However detrimental as it may seem, they were just happy with the status quo.

So what can I do? I know convincing them will not work, and I do not like to play that game anyway. I have uncovered the truth to their current situation and presented a suitable solution to solve it’s problem. I have been doing this long enough to know that there are just some people that you can not help regardless what you try to do.

Why, it’s because some people are afraid of change! What they don’t realize is that status quo is like sitting on the railway track and change is the locomotive. If you don’t move you are going to be run over. It’s coming whether you want it or not. Change is the one constant to life. Those who adapt quickly survive and thrive, the others just get left behind. What I want you to take from this is to be open minded and flexible in your approach to your goals, as there is more than one way to achieve your objectives. Specially if the one that you are currently doing is not getting your the results that you wanted in the first place.

As always, I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers,

Pat

p.s- You can find me on Twitter,Linkedin, Facebookand friendfeed.

Pss- if you sand still for too long, you are going to get run over.

Your last day….

Yup, you read that correctly. What would you do if today was your last day? I am not sure if this article was inspired by watching “The Bucket List” last night or hearing Nickelback’s song “If today was your last day”. There is a sad truth that we all have to face is that none of us get out of here alive. However we can make a difference while we are here. You can make an impact (in the world of business, the arts or for a cause), but better yet you could leave a legacy.

Leaving a legacy is a much better move than leaving your family holding the bag. That is what could happen if you leave pre-maturely intestate, that is what they call it when you die without a will. What could also happen in this case is you could also make the government your largest beneficiary. Here is the alternative, get in-touch with a good family lawyer to help you do up a will. It is actually a relatively simple and painless process. At this point you may think that’s all there is to it. However I know this from personal experience of having lost both my Mom and my wife’s Mom, that there is more to be considered.

Life insurance, yes life insurance. As exciting as that sounds it is necessary if you have dependents and or debts that exceed the total of your assets. At least that is what most insurance salesman or financial planners would tell you. If this is the case then they are leaving out something very important. The other reason you should consider insurance is to offset any potential estate taxes.

Picture this, you have worked very hard all your life and have built up a sizable nest egg and have very little debt. You have thought ahead and prepared your will and even have insurance. However your insurance policy is old and has not been updated and your nest egg has grown very well over the years. What happens when you pass is your will goes into probate and the end result is your dependents will get what is left after the government takes a huge chunk for estate taxes. So the moral of this story is, get a will and talk with a financial advisor or insurance expert to make sure that you have adequate insurance to provide for your family and to offset any potential estate taxes.

This article was written for the sole purpose of illustrating that estate planning should be part of any complete financial plan. Live each day as if it were your last. Find joy in what you do, see the good in others and pass it on.

As Always, I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers,

Pat

p.s- You can find me on Twitter,Linkedin, Facebookand friendfeed.

September 2009

Below are the details on some key factors in our economy. Take a look and let me know what you think. Feel free to to contact me if you have any questions.

In Therapy?

Or on life support? What exactly is the state of your finances? Should we break out the paddles now? This came to mind as I am still suffering from my latest crossfit workout from earlier today. Maybe some therapy would be good right about now.

Anyway back to the topic at hand. Like your physical health, are your finances healthy? Or do they need therapy? One of my favorite quotes from Tony Robbins is this “In your moments of decision you destiny is shaped”. The reason why I put this here is I need to know if you are happy with the way things are or are you ready to make a decision and change your life for the better? In the end it is really up to you and no one else, we are all born with the power to decide our own fate. If you knew you could not fail, wouldn’t you want more? The truth is you can never fail unless you give up, and by saying this I mean settling for what you have right now.

Once you have made the decision, the turnaround can be drastic and immediate or slow and gradual. It’s really all up to you. It is one of those things where you get out of it exactly what you put into it. Success leaves clues, you don’t have to do it on your own. Seek our people who have done it before, read their stores, talk to advisors, make a plan then put it to work. If there is anything that I can possibly help with please feel free to let me know. I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers,

Pat

p.s- You can find me on Twitter,Linkedin, Facebookand friendfeed.

Do you have the receipt?

By this I mean do you keep good records? If revenue Canada were to call you today and said that you were being audited for all your taxes from the last 7 years would you be able to supply the proof to back up your claims? For this reason if you don’t have good records then you should. An example from today, I received a registered letter stating that I owed a bill from a few years ago. It took a few minutes but I found the confirmation and faxed it to them proving that it had been paid. That was a great peace of mind to both me and my wife.

So how long should you keep your financial recourds? Actually according to Revenue Canada you should keep the supporting documents related to your income tax for 6 years this is in case your file came up for review. What should you keep, how do you do it and where should you store them? If you work for someone else, you should have on hand confirmation of your annual income and registered investments. Copies of your recent filing’s would be ideal. If you are self employed you should have confirmation of your annual income, registered investments, and expenses related to your business. The system that I find that works best for me is to have a file for each month, with confirmation of income and expenses for the the month. To do this properly you should have a locked filing cabinet and a paper shredder ( for the personal statements that you don’t need to keep).

Another thing that having good records does is allows you to stay on top of all your current commitments, have a clear idea of where you are going and helps reduce the overall stress related to managing your money. As for working with me, it will make the process of obtaining a loan that much easier and quicker. If you have any questions please feel free to give me a call. If you need help getting organized, contact Colette at Organize Anything and she can help you get started.

Cheers,

Pat

Have I got your Interest?

Well if I have not then I should, that’s because the Bank of Canada today announced that they will leave the key lending rate basically unchanged at .25%. However that is not the best part, the kicker is that they say that they will not touch the rate until mid next year. That is provided we do not have any unforeseen increases in inflation.  At this point you may be asking yourself, what’s in it for me? Well here it is, lower costs of borrowing, on things like secured and unsecured lines of credit, variable rate mortgages and any other loan that may be linked to the prime lending rate.

So what do you do now? Well given this news there is no better time than the present to take a look at your current financial situation and see if there could be room for improvement. By combining you high interest loans into one low interest loan you will lower your current monthly payments, cut your cost of borrowing and if done correctly can also be a way to achieve debt freedom much more quickly.

If you would like a free no obligation debt analysis, then feel free to contact my office. I will provide you with a simple form to fill out where can get a better idea of where your finances are right now and show you how to create a brighter financial future for yourself. I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers,

Pat

p.s- You can find me on Twitter,Linkedin, Facebookand friendfeed.

Reality Distortion field

Ok I have to admit that I was inspired by or influenced by today’s Apple press conference to write this blog post. For those who don’t know I am a serious Mac head. The term “Reality Distortion Field” is used to describe being in the presence of Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs. Because of his charisma or his strong belief’s people look at things differently after being in his presence.

However the reason that I am using that term is to ask you if you are suffering from a distorted reality in some area of your life? For example I told my wife for years that I was 6 foot, I knew I wasn’t and she believed me until one day she decided to measure me and found out for herself that I am only 5 “11. So it makes me feel better to say that I am 6 foot but it just does not happen to be true. Another example is I thought I was in pretty decent physical condition, I have been working out for years, and just recently I started doing the Crossfit workout. Talk about a serious blow to my ego and a major reality adjustment after I could not complete several of the workouts as prescribed.

For the sake of this article let’s turn the focus on your financial reality. Do you tell yourself and or others that you are good with money? When in-fact you spend more than you make, are behind in your bills, and spend money to appear more successful than you actually are. If this is the case you may be in the need of a serious reality adjustment. Before it gets to the point of an intervention, now may be the best time to sit down and do a thorough analysis of your financial situation. You should sit down and figure out what your monthly expenses really are, and also get in-touch with your actual monthly income. Sometimes this practice alone with help people get an understanding of their financial reality. If you think that you may need help with the process, then please feel free to contact my office at your earliest convenience. I can also put you in contact with a great financial advisor in my friend Steve Cox. Once your debts are under control, Steve can help you develop a plan to insure your financial future is a future that you can look enjoy. I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers,

Pat

p.s- You can find me on Twitter,Linkedin, Facebookand friendfeed.

P.S- Steve I am glad that you are back!

Is it the end?

…. or a new beginning? It all depends on how you look at it. Whether it be divorce, bankruptcy or loss of employment, it does not always mean that the sky is falling and the worst has happened to you.  Some view these major life changing events as a reason to change their life for the better and this could apply to you as well. I remember back in February of 2002, I was made redundant ( laid off, downsized, eliminate and voted off) from a company that I worked at for over 7 years. I was disappointed  but not devastated. I took that opportunity to get into something that I really enjoyed, something that I could get exponential return for the effort that I put into it, I started my own business, and have never looked back.

I know as hard as it may be when these events are happening to see the bright side, it takes time but there always is one. It even took me several months to get myself going in the right direction. What I had going for me at the time is that I had a goal in mind and was very clear about my objective.

If one of your goals are to start and operate you own business, then congratulations on making that decision. You have made the 1st step in the right direction. You should realize that there are lots of resources at your disposal. There are experts who can help you with your business planning, commercial leasing agents to help you locate the right spot for your business, and if needed we can help you secure financing to insure the future success of your venture.  Feel free to give my office a call, I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers,

Pat

p.s- You can find me on Twitter,Linkedin, Facebookand friendfeed.