We all do it, every day of the week, make plans then have to change them: “change of plan, meet you in town instead”; “change of plan, Johnny’s poorly, can’t go to school, I need to take the day off”; “change of plan, nobody’s going to school” (!!).
And now we’re faced with one of the biggest plan changers: Covid-19. As Mike Tyson allegedly stated (let’s stick with his boxing prowess): “everybody has a plan….until they get hit in the face”.
Quite a profound statement from Mr Tyson, but one that is very appropriate in this day and age – once again, plans have gone ‘out of the window’ and we need to sit down and rethink. This happens all the time in history; the soldiers on the battlefields of ‘The Great War’ were all aware of plans given to them by the Generals and yet, as soon as they put their bodies on the line and came out of the trenches, all plans went ‘out of the window’.
So, to go back to the boxing statement, we have been well hit in the face – perhaps even knocked down – and so how do we plan to recover?
Things are going to change, clearly there’s going to be a ‘new’ normal, social distancing will be with us for quite some time (would you feel comfortable at the moment attending any form of party celebration or a crowded pub?).
We are going to see many casualties along the way and, here’s the thing, it’s not the biggest and the fittest which will necessarily survive, it’s those that adapt to the new normal – or so goes Charles Darwin’s ‘Theory of Evolution’.
And so how do we adapt? We do that with a change of plan. In one form or another, you’re likely to have plans in place for the future: house purchase, family planning, changing job, setting up your own business, taking life easier, phasing your retirement and enjoying the lifestyle that you want……some of these plans may still be in their incubation stage, some you may be exercising already, some have not even got started; whatever, they ideally all need a good looking over to see where you now stand. And, one-by-one you may succumb to changing these plans.
As with many such crises in the past, it’s evident that one of the biggest casualties is the planning of finances – Covid-19 is having a huge impact in all matters financial. A common factor is that we all have need to re-focus, in one way or another, on our financial planning.
So what to do? Having been in the Financial Services industry for over 35 years, I’ve come across these crisis situations on many occasions – and always, in view of the financial impact, have had to go back and redraw my own plans for the future – you may have to do the same.
Questions to ask yourself:
- As far as financial planning is concerned, do you currently have a lifestyle financial plan?
- Do you know what a lifestyle financial plan is?
- When was the last time you looked at your plan?
- Have you discussed changing your plans with your adviser?
That is why I am here, call or email with any questions or queries or to schedule a meeting – 0113 2687928 or email at info@advicemattersfinancialplanning.com and let’s chat.
I will re-visit this subject in my next ‘blog’: ‘Fail to plan, plan to fail’. Until next time…
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