You have gone through all the work of pulling together your financial information and thought about your goals and objectives and have reviewed your plan. Great! Now what? How do you know if you are following your plan 6 months down the road?

For our clients, at each meeting we create a line graph that shows where they should be based on their plan. We ask one simple question -  are you above the line? There are 2 easy answers - yes or no.  This allows everyone to see if they are on track to meet their goals.

If the client is above the line they are on well on track to meet the goals they outlined in their plan. If they are not above the line than we ask why. Usually it is because the client is not contributing what they said they would or they are taking out too much. Both are within the clients control and we can examine if the plan was wrong and the expectations are not achievable. This is when we revisit the plan and make the necessary adjustments so everyone is on board. It is after all - the client's plan.

Sometimes, with small changes like retirement date or savings amount, the plan can get back on track. We usually update the plans every 3 years to be sure the goals still make sense. The great news for our clients is that they can always answer the question!