We have all been there. Whether it is not getting the promotion or appointment to the C-suite, not hitting the jackpot with a start-up company investment or hedge fund or not reaching a savings goal in order to buy a fancy new car or retire by a certain year. We miss winning our own, personal “national championship”.
The keys to recovery are resilience and focus (2 weeks ago’s TGIF 2 Minutes talked about focus, as well). In Atlanta this past Monday, resilience and focus were on display in the CFP National Football Championship between Notre Dame and Ohio State, as well as an economic mismatch… but more about the economic mismatches of college sports in another edition.
As for resilience and focus, these two concepts figure heavily into personal finance, saving and investing.
Resilience:
Not every year will see the types of market gains by both stocks and bonds that were delivered in 2024. And certain years, 2022 is a poignant recent example, will deliver harsh and disappointing performance results. But that does not mean it is not the right time or too late to get organized and establish investments! Investing takes a savings plan – and resilience. Where resilience comes in is related to behavioral finance and a person not beating herself or himself up for not having established a disciplined savings plan yet. No matter what age – early 20’s, 30’s…all the way up to late 50’s – it is not too early or too late to “get with the program” in terms of setting up savings and investment vehicles.
Focus:
Everyone has a favorite thing on which to focus – kids, sports, religion, a dynamic work endeavor, education, leadership, travel, working out, creative and artistic pursuits – or some kind of combination of a couple of these. At times, one element can let us down. But with focus – and critical to focus can be advice – a plan can stay on track or recover.
The football players of Notre Dame possess focus and resilience, but Ohio State had more of both and won the national championship. Amazing was that players of both teams thanked God on national television after the game. That is evidence of belief in resilience – and a heck of a lot of focus.
It is still only JANUARY for another solid week. That is enough time to establish or confirm a handful of savings goals, formulate an investment plan with proper advice and to get into training for the next investing year or march to the national championship.
This material has been prepared for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied upon for tax, legal or accounting advice.