Leilene

Earlier we compared your fiscal health to your physical health. Nowadays we all know that we have to be a lot more proactive if we’re going to stay healthy. We have to talk to our doctors and learn the appropriate questions to ask. We need to get a physical every year so that we can deal with any potential medical problems early on, then have follow-up visits as needed. Our financial lives operate the same way To manage our money well so that we can live the life we want now and in the future, we need to be able to talk about it and to have smart and open conversations with our family— our financial advisors.
Notice the s on the end of conversations. It is not a question of doing it just once. To keep yourself fiscally healthy, you have to schedule regular checkups. Sad to say, but most of us pay more attention to the regular maintenance of our car than to our own financial well-being. So you’ll need to do more than simply read this book. You’ll need to talk. In fact, you’ll need to talk a lot.
There’s a frequently quoted theory that we learn from our mistakes. But big decisions—from marriage and kids to career and retirement—don’t come around that often. So as much as possible, you want to get those right the First or second time around. Getting yourself up to speed on the basics that affect you and your family, and then engaging in an ongoing dialogue to stay on track, are the only ways to build the life that you really want and deserve.
Remember Pete and the marriage he almost lost? “We handle everything jointly now,” he says. So every decision leads to conversation. They talk about their strengths and weaknesses and how those affect their various responsibilities in and out of the family. Together they’ve created a sound financial plan that reflects who they are, what they value, and what they want from life. “You’d be surprised at the benefits you get not just on the financial front but from a relationship perspective as well,” says Pete. “My wife was nineteen when I married her. This is like meeting a whole new person.”
Hindsight may be twenty-twenty, but having regrets is no way to live—or end—your life. That’s why this book will cover all the basics you’ll need to engage those people who are important to you in ongoing discussions that can improve not only how you deal with money but life as you know it. What’s our first stop? Building up the finances that will sustain the life you decide you really want. So let’s start talking!