If you want to be successful in life, both in your achievements and with your finances, it is important for you to define your specific priorities. It is very hard to achieve anything or to save money if you don’t know what your goals are.
Everyone has priorities, whether they are aware of them or not. If you had to tell me off the top of your head what your priorities are right now, would you be able to come up with a few right away? Some people’s priorities include providing for their children, saving for retirement, advancing their career, etc.
The first and most important step in moving forward and becoming financially successful is to define your priorities and then work towards achieving them. For instance, there is always a trade off. If you want to live an expensive lifestyle, you will need to work really hard to be able to afford it. On the flip side, if you like to live simply and don’t really need all the latest and greatest stuff out there, then you will likely won’t need to work as hard to maintain your simpler lifestyle.
If your priority is to provide for your kids, you will likely open up Registered Education Savings Plans (RESPs) for your kids to help save for their future education. If your priority is to save for retirement, opening a Tax Free Savings Account (TFSA) and/or a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) would be a good first step.
No matter what your priorities are, make sure to take a minute to reflect and actually get down to defining them. Once you know where you want your energy and money to be directed , then you can make sure to put together a strategy to actually make it happen.
Surprisingly, it seems that many people are not aware of their true priorities. They might think they know what their priorities are, but later they realize that their true priorities are neglected. If this is the case for you, it’s not too late to make things right and to redirect your focus onto the things that really matter to you.
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