The Winter Olympics just wrapped up. Over 2800 athletes from 92 countries competed in 16 sports.
Naturally there was much attention given to big name sports like hockey and curling. But I started thinking about all the other sports.
If you are like me then you probably only think about sports like bobsleigh, luge and biathlon every four years, when the Olympics are on. Of course, just because these sports are not on my radar doesn’t mean that the athletes that participate aren’t just as serious about their particular discipline.
They are no casual participants in the Winter Olympics. No athlete just shows up at the Olympics and jumps on the rink, or track, or mountain ready to go. Every one of these athletes spent years preparing to get to this spot, where they are ready to compete amongst the best in the world in their chosen field.
Just making it to the Olympics is an achievement, and none of this was by accident. Every one of those competitors had a plan. They put the effort in. They put the time in. They did the things that they needed to do to be successful. They stayed focused on their goals, and now they can call themselves an Olympian.
Here’s my point.
If you are an athlete, and you have the goal of making it to the Olympics, you are going to work seriously to prepare. You will have a training plan. You are going to identify what it is going to take to be successful, and then you are going to act accordingly.
There is an obvious parallel when it comes to money goals.
Some people are great at money. They know exactly what is important to them, and they have a plan for what they need to do with their money in order to achieve their Great Goals in life. These people are financial Olympians.
The fantastic news is that you can be a financial Olympian too. But it won’t happen by accident.
Many people are just too casual with their money. They don’t really plan for the future. They make decisions based on instant gratification. They think about today, and not tomorrow. These are the people that spend more time planning their vacation than they will their retirement.
Some people think that the future will look after itself. Or they think that they just don’t have the time, or the knowledge, to plan for the future. Maybe they think that things are beyond their control, so why bother? Or they have some other self-talk that they use as an excuse for procrastination.
The crazy part is, the future is where we all are going to end up. Does it not make sense to do what we need to make it a good one?
It is just not very likely that you will one day wake up retired, and also have the lifestyle that you aspire to, if you don’t prepare ahead of time. It is not realistic to drift through your working years and then hope that the numbers magically add up at the end.
Being a real Olympic athlete is really hard. It takes years of training and sacrifice, and even then you just might not be fast enough to win a medal. Not everyone has what it takes. The good news here is that making good financial decisions is not limited to the world’s best. The preparation does not have to be extreme.
But you do need a plan. You need to know what you are aiming for. You cannot ignore savings, ignore debt, ignore investment discipline, and then expect to perform like an Olympic athlete when the moment arrives.
You need to set aside money consistently. You need to review your progress. You need to make adjustments when life throws a curveball. Most importantly, you need to start before the moment of competition arrives.
Olympic athletes do not wait until the year of the Games to get serious. They start years in advance.
Financial success works the same way. The visible result - a comfortable retirement, a debt free household, the ability to help your kids or your parents - does not happen in a single year. It is the outcome of small, consistent, thoughtful decisions made over a long period of time.
Will your future be one of achievement, or one of regret?
The difference between abundance and scarcity is preparation. It doesn’t happen by accident.
Brad Brain. CFP, R.F.P., CIM, TEP is a Certified Financial Planner in Fort St John, BC. This material is prepared for general circulation and may not reflect your individual financial circumstances. Brad can be reached at www.bradbrainfinancial.com.
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