Understanding and applying the principles of effective goal setting has never been more important than in today’s world of financial planning. We can get caught up in media frenzy and become confused when we hear words like Bitcoin and GameStop. Goal setting has a starting point and ending point, with the financial journey of reaching your goals being in the middle. It also has a set dollar cost. Effective goal setting will provide you with a savings, investment or spending policy that you strive for over a specific period of time.

Some Common Financial Goals Include:

• Creating and adhering to a budget
• Establishing an emergency fund covering three to six months of fixed expenses
• College savings
• Planning for retirement
• Living beneath your means
• Debt management and reduction

As financial planners, we have the important fiduciary duty of helping our clients identify and select goals. It is incumbent upon us as advisors to help our clients prioritize those goals and make appropriate recommendations for reaching them. To arrive at those recommendations we must apply reasonable assumptions and estimates that may include life expectancy, inflation rates, tax rates, investment returns and other necessary financial assumptions. Is there a goal that you have not achieved or one that you would like to discuss?

Greenwood Capital is an SEC registered investment advisory firm. This material has been prepared for information purposes only, and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on solely for tax, legal or accounting advice.