It’s important to make sure that you’re still on track to achieve your long term financial goals and objectives, but first, you must ask yourself the question –

Have the goalposts moved?

Firstly, let’s take a moment to reflect on your personal financial goals. I encourage you to grab a pen and paper and write this down. A few questions you could ask yourself are:

• What position am I currently in today?
• What am I looking to achieve in 3, 5 and 10 years?
• Is this different from what I had planned prior to the pandemic?

Financial goals are fluid and they can move with you as your priorities and situation change. To help you with this exercise, I suggest using the SMART technique which I wrote about HERE in a previous blog.

Review your budget and stick to it

Once you have identified your financial goals, the next thing would be to review your budget and cash flow. Look at how much cash is coming in and going out and ask yourself if you need to make any changes today so that it is aligned with your current financial goals.

Are there also things that you could cut back on, such as online shopping due to boredom?

Research has shown that more people are splurging on online shopping and the number of parcels delivered across the Australia Post network during the last week of April is 90% more than the same time last year.

If you are, then it is important to reassess your goals and make small changes, because these little changes do add up and make a difference in the long term.

Whether you are wanting to pay down debt as soon as possible, buy a home or save up for a big holiday once the pandemic is all over, your budget and cash flow management would help drive the success of achieving those goals.

As we all know, this is an unprecedented and unusual moment for everyone and our income and expenses could vary widely compared to pre-COVID-19. Therefore, when things return to normal, I urge you to revisit your spending and make any changes where necessary.

Are you protected?

The current pandemic has been a shocking event, especially from a health perspective, it has illustrated that none of us really know what lies around the corner. Most people have insurance for their car and home but fail to cover their most valuable assets – which is their life and ability to generate income over the long term.

When was the last time you had your personal insurance reviewed? By this, I refer to Life, Total and Permanent Disablement (TPD) Insurance, Trauma Insurance and Income Protection (IP) Insurance.

Having the right personal insurance in place is prudent financial management especially during challenging times like this as it ensures that we protect ourselves and our loved ones against life’s uncertainties.

Need help? Please reach out.

If you are reading this and feel that you need help with the review of your insurance, financial goals or wealth management in general, please reach out, our financial advice team are more than happy to discuss your situation and goals.