Where Do You See Yourself in Five Years?

I think most people associate that question with somewhat unpleasant scenarios like job interviews or meeting your significant other's parents for the first time, and while those scenarios fit the stereotype, it seems like we stop asking that question at some point. To be honest, I’m not sure why. I think it is a good question for young people because it creates a framework for setting goals that are aspirational and achievable. But I can’t see how it ever stops being a valuable question for anyone to consider. As you go through life, what you want will change, and so will what you need to focus on to keep your priorities in place and achieve them. I think the truth is, asking yourself “where do I want to be in five years?” is really about taking time for yourself to think about “what do I want, and how can I get there?” Put another way, it’s a good way to make a plan. 

Most people hope or assume it gets easier to figure out what's most important to you, and that may be true, but it doesn't mean it's equally easy to plan how to get to those important things. Keeping up with your future plan in an ever-changing world takes time, focus, and energy. You can do all the research, set goals and deadlines, and do whatever else may help, but it only matters if you follow through and take action. 

The same is true when it comes to managing your finances and aligning your finances with your goals. With that in mind, I thought it would be a good idea to share some details about the benefits of working with us, or any financial planning firm. I have shared in the past what the process is like at each stage of planning.  My goal is to share what clients have told us has been beneficial, or what I have seen help others in my life. Hopefully, this will help someone wondering whether working with North Haven Financial, or any financial planner, on an ongoing basis is the right move.

What is the Benefit of Ongoing Planning?

1: Planning, by nature, is not a singular event. 

If you have ever planned… frankly, anything, you know your first plan was likely not the one you put into action. You probably also had to adapt the plan on the fly throughout the process. Financial planning is no different. Life is always changing and evolving. Some of those changes come from our own decisions, like the desire to pursue a goal sooner rather than later. Other times, they come from something outside our control, like an unexpected health event or home repair. These unexpected changes can and will occur, and they will invariably require updating the plan you had in place to adapt to the new reality. A large part of what makes ongoing financial planning valuable is having an expert available to discuss what has changed, the potential impacts, and the decisions you need to make now and in the future to feel comfortable and confident that the plan can support what matters to you. 

2: Getting expertise when it is needed. 

Working with a financial planner on an ongoing basis means someone else is dedicating time to focus on the ‘what-ifs’ that may occur in your plan. Considering what is coming up and what may have changed since you last reviewed your plan. Having someone with financial planning expertise and knowledge of your situation means they can review it, weigh options against your values and priorities, and provide insight into what's available. For example, for clients who are currently retired or otherwise taking regular withdrawals from their investments, we monitor their portfolios & withdrawal strategies monthly to catch any changes that may require adjustments to their plan. This means reviewing how much they can withdraw, which can affect the timing of goals or tax-planning opportunities and how different parts of a financial plan connect. 

3: Someone to hold you accountable for getting things done.

We all know we should take time to review our accounts, credit cards, insurance coverage, and everything else. These are also tasks that, like any good habit, are easiest to put off until a “later” that somehow never becomes “today.”  Hopefully our clients appreciate this, but having a financial planner means someone else is there to gently nudge you with reminders about small things that are easy to forget. Updating beneficiary designations for your accounts, looking for insurance policy quotes when a policy has been in place long enough for premiums to creep up, what tax documents to expect before the filing deadline, and so on. 

Often, it is just a matter of a small reminder to set aside time to focus on the simple but important actions that keep all the details up to date and taken care of.

Hopefully I have explained these ideas well and given, at a high level, some insight into the impact of having someone you can rely on as an advisor year over year. As I have often heard my father, Mike, say, “A plan works best when implemented.” Taking the time to think about what you would like the next five years of your life, maybe how the first five years of your retirement, to look like is only the first step to putting your plan into action.