By Tony Urdes
The fact that we are on average living longer and are healthier for longer should be good news. But it comes with a challenge: How do we finance this longer life?
First, longevity is not the same as aging. Aging is about end of life, but longevity is about all of life. In response to living longer, people need to prepare for more stages and more transitions.
In today’s fast and complex world, pursuing your life’s goals is being challenged in so many new ways. That is why now is the perfect time to review your life’s goals and clearly understand where your money is – and why. Creating a sense of purpose and adding structure to your financial journey can improve your results and give you a sense of financial and emotional comfort.
The best way to predict the future is to create it. The responsibility for planning your financial journey applies to all investors. We are each unique and very different; thus our individual plan will differ from all other plans depending on our stage in life, our specific situation and our specific goals. Add to that our different investment philosophy, values, attitude, risk tolerance, objectives and expectations, and soon you realize that collaborating with a professional financial advisor might be the smart way to approach a successful and purposeful financial journey.
Where you are today is the result of important choices and thoughtful decisions you’ve made along the way. Now that you are here:
- How do you plan on managing the multi-year cash flow for you and your family?
- How do you plan on funding your next business or personal ambition?
- How do you plan on making sure you have enough assets to fund your Great Goals in Life, besides your general living expenses, medical costs, charitable giving, vacations, family education expenses, weddings, etc.?
- How do you make sure that your successes go beyond you and your family? How can you ensure that your legacy and values will be carried forward for generations?
- How do you educate your next generation about the responsibilities that come with inheriting a purposeful legacy? Are they equipped with the knowledge and the passion to handle the inherited wealth, not only as a gift but also as an important responsibility?
“Action without vision is only passing time, vision without action is merely day dreaming, but vision with action can change the world” (Nelson Mandela).
Building anything worthwhile requires careful thought and a long-term perspective.
With passion, inspired by your vision, and a deep level of knowledge, your trusted financial advisor can help you create a smart and dynamic personalized plan, a plan that includes expertise and time-tested strategies to help you address challenges and take advantage of opportunities over time. Your advisor can facilitate conversations with your loved ones and help you develop your unified vision for all you want to accomplish.
So, what’s the smartest thing you can do for you and your loved ones today? Decide what you want your future to look like and work with your trusted financial advisor to create your plan for the next 5-10-20-30-50+ years and generations to come. And after that, do everything you can to follow that plan, stay healthy and spend time with the people you love.
Tony Urdes, together with Bianca Urdes and Ken Miller, is the Urdes Miller Group at Stifel Financial Corp. Website: urdesmiller.com. The group was featured in Oregon Jewish Life last May: orjewishlife.com/tony-bianca-urdes-putting-people-first. Tony can be reached at tony.urdes@stifel.com or 503-499-6275.
