Home
>
Wealth Building
>
Re-discovering the Fundamentals of Financial Planning

Re-discovering the Fundamentals of Financial Planning

To lose weight in the 80's, we went on low-calorie diets. In the 90's, we switched to low-fat diets, and now, in the 21st Century, we are completely convinced that it's all about the low-carb diet. What ever happened to just eating healthy?

In a culture where everyone is looking for shortcuts, it's not often that you see something about fundamentals. Well, take note of the following three basics of financial planning, because it may just be what's been missing from your 'plate.'

1) Have a goal in mind! Savings are only as useful as your desire to apply them to a specific purpose. If your goal is a new home, great; if it's to send the kids to Fordham, even better; and if it's retirement, terrific. Once you have the "why," you must determine "how much," and "when." These two variables will determine how aggressive you must be, as well as how much of a present sacrifice you'll need to make in order to reach your goal.

2) Spend less than you earn! If you're a bit late in the game with this one, then the first order of business is to minimize your debt. The common American philosophy is to spend first, and save what's left. Contrast this with the Eastern tendency to invest first, and spend what's left. Can you guess which approach is more likely to lead to wealth? Many people will admit that it is unreasonable to buy a 50" plasma television if the only way to pay for it is with a monthly installment plan. Why then don't we apply the same philosophy to buying a home? When considering rent versus a mortgage, it is generally advantageous to have the mortgage. However, replacing the five-bedroom home with a nine-bedroom home before the five-bedroom has been paid off simply doesn't fit the model.

3) Invest monthly, and start now! $1,000 invested monthly is a heck of a lot easier than $12,000 at year's end. Add to that the concept of dollar-cost averaging and more often than not, you'll also earn more over time. Finally, because of compounding, the sooner you get started, even at a small amount, the less time it will take to get wherever it is you want to go-even if that includes a stop along the way for a low-carb tofurkey salad.

Matthew S. Clement is a financial planner and investment advisor representative with Financial Network Investment Corporation, member SIPC. He provides holistic wealth management and retirement planning to individuals and businesses. He can be reached in New York at (845) 942-8578, or by email: clementm@financialnetwork.com.

recurring cleaning service Mundelein ..

In The News:

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Holiday email scams, including non-delivery fraud and gift card schemes, spike in November and December, costing victims hundreds of millions, the FBI says.

Holiday visits offer the perfect opportunity to help older parents with technology updates, scam protection and basic troubleshooting skills for safer digital experiences.

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Researchers exploited WhatsApp's API vulnerability to scrape 3.5 billion phone numbers. Learn how this massive data breach happened and protect yourself.

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.

FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.

Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.

Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.

New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.

FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.

New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.

OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.

Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.

New Android malware NGate steals NFC payment codes in real-time, allowing criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs without your card. Learn protection tips.

DoorDash confirms data breach exposing customer names, emails, addresses after social engineering attack. Learn how to protect yourself from scams.

Re-discovering the Fundamentals of Financial Planning

Wealth Building