Identifying your financial goals.

Upon commencement of your Financial Planning Process, one of the first questions you will be asked is 'What are your goals?"

Seems like a simple enough question, yet we understand from experience and research that just asking you this question is not enough.

An on-the-spot question often leads to top-of-mind priorities and may not represent an accurate or holistic picture of what's truly important to you.

We call it a 'thinking blind spot.'

Thinking blind spots are the goal-killers.

Everyone has behavioral biases, and some of these biases pop up when we look for financial goals because of the emotions involved, the complexities of the decision, and the difficulty of forecasting our future desires.

For example, a client who recently visited friends at their freshly renovated house might say that her top financial goal is to renovate her house, simply because that’s top of mind and easy to remember.
Such mental shortcuts can overlook other financial goals that may actually have greater importance.

Research* suggests that without proper guidance, individuals often fail to identify as many as half of the goals that they later recognize to be central to their plans.

* Bond, Samuel D.; Carlson, Kurt A., and Keeney, Ralph L. “Generating Objectives: Can Decision Makers Articulate What They Want?”

The most common financial goals

Behavioural science shows that people can sometimes be strangers to themselves.

In order for us to help you achieve your goals, we need to start by first identifying the right goals for you. Some find this process cathartic and some find it confonting.

Our list of most common financial goals is by no means exhaustive. What we hope this list does is assist you in your goal-making process, potentially avoiding a thinking blind-spot, and ensuring we're working towards exactly what you want.

We have seen it all and we're here to help with all the questions you may have along the way.

Emotions matter

Many of our clients have found after considering the most common financial goals, their final goals outlined in their financial plan were targeted and more aligned with their emotionally driven motivations.
An emotional connection with your financial plan is important to ensure that you're completely invested in the process and will experience genuine fulfillment as we advance towards your goals.