Hi Dear Children,
Thank you for your wishes and letters. I read each of your letter and I am brimming with joy to see how concerned you all are in taking charge of your finances. Financial independence is the biggest gift you can give to yourself and your family.
What you earn is important, but what you do with your earnings is more important.
As a response to some of your letters asking for financial advice, I have penned down 4 lessons from my personal experiences. Hope you will find it useful and would apply in the new year. But before that, I have tried my hand at editing the jingle to match my advice. Enjoy!
Jingle Bell Jingle Bell Jingle all the way
Santa Claus is coming around, let’s see what he has to say
A day or two ago, I thought I’d take a ride
To tell you all my mantra of Plan. Save. Track with pride
Ho Ho Ho
#Lesson 1 - Plan your Goals
Not the football goals…ha ha
All your dreams..big or small when attached to a timeline will become a goal and thats an important lesson in your finances as well. If you want to change “I wish” to “I will”, you have to have define your goals. Goals that are Clear. Specific. Measurable.
I agree with Warren Buffet on the following lines - “Do not save what is left after spending, but spend what is left after saving.” I would add here Save with Goals in mind.
But How? Many of you have expressed how much you would like to save but struggle with so many expenses and ever increasing inflation.
I would say if you have goals, you have the motivation to save. Pen down all your goals and then align your investment options with them. Clear goals that sync with your income and responsibilities make way to a successful investment.
That’s what I do at the start of the year, to save for all the lovely presents for you all across the world. Now that I am learning how to use internet, I can tell how convenient it has made my life. Why don’t you do your goal planning online as well? With a few clicks, I sorted my plan for this christmas. I am sure you can too.
#Lesson 2 - Invest Wise
I believe whether it is your heart, your time or your money, you should invest it wisely. At least I follow this philosophy.
I leave it to you on what/whom you would like to invest your heart and time, but money my friend needs a well thought out plan. Once you have sorted your goals, make sure you have a workable plan by your side to park your hard earned money. Your money is not just a way to fulfil your materialistic desires, it is the result of your time spent away from your loved ones as well. So you have a responsibility to ensure the sacrifice of personal time made by your family is well rewarded. At least I see it this way.
How to make the plan? Simple!
Keep your goals and the deadline for achieving them in sync with the money you can invest and the kind of risk you are willing to take.Once you have clarity of these things, pick your investment options. Do not follow the herd, be yourself and find your way. What might work for your friend may not work for you. If you are not confident of what investment options would work the best for you, take help of financial wizards.
#Lesson 3 - Track your Savings
After you have parked your money, do not forget about it. Try to be like GPS, I love the way it tracks the journey till you manage to reach your destination. You should track how your money is growing, what you need to do to appreciate it. Your earnings might change, your priorities might change, the market might change so your investment options should change too.
I upgraded my sleigh with GPS this year and I am so happy that I was able to reach out to all my children with presents on time. If you feel the need to upgrade your plans, seek help from professionals who will lend a hand at Planning, Investing and Tracking.
#Lesson 4 - Repeat till you succeed
This is an important part of any successful journey. Unless you reach your goals, you should keep investing and once you do, you can always set fresh goals.
Till we are alive, our desires will grow…so Plan.Invest.Track. Repeat!
I hope your bank balance will get fatter with my advice this year.
Merry Christmas!
May God be with you
Yours lovingly,
Santa
