When you hear the words, “Financial planning,” what goes through your head?
I’ll be honest – I reckon your first reaction isn’t a thought at all, but a suppressed yawn.
I mean, is there a more boring-sounding phrase in the entire English language than “Financial planning?”
If you think about it a bit more, you’re probably picturing a table full of spreadsheets, calculators and a geek at the head of the table spouting off reams of numbers and financial gobbledygook.
It doesn’t sound attractive, does it?
So today I’m going to tell you the truth about financial planning…
Prepare to be shocked!
You see, I’ve run plenty of business and financial planning sessions in my day, and they are honestly some of the most interesting, lively, energising sessions you can ever have.
And I’m not just saying that because I’m the numbers guy at the head of the table!
You see, here’s the secret.
Very little about financial planning is actually about numbers.
It’s about WHAT you’re trying to achieve and HOW you’re going to do it.
The numbers only come into it at the very end…..
…When you’re ready to figure out what all your plans mean in financial terms.
Here are a few examples of the kinds of things we talk about in our business and financial planning sessions.
We might ask you why your business exists in the first place – what it means to you and what its purpose is (beyond providing you with an income or wealth)…
…And what you personally want to get out of your business – not just financially but what kind of hours you want to work, how hands-on you’d like to be.
These have nothing to do with numbers technically, but I can’t help you develop really good financial goals and plans without understanding what kind of business you’re trying to build!
What kind of business you’d like to run, how you’d like it to change, when you’d like to reduce your hours or retire – all these have direct financial implications, and we need to understand them first, before we discuss numbers.
Here are another couple of examples.
We might ask you about your team, and about whether you have the right people in place to achieve your business goals…
And what’s stopping you from succeeding, and what you might need in place that you don’t currently have.
I’m sure you can see immediately why these are crucial issues to sort out, before you allocate any numbers to your budget or set any financial goals.
That’s why the discussions are always so worthwhile, thought-provoking and even fun….
…Because they are essentially about you (and let’s be honest, everyone likes talking about themselves)!
But of course, at the end of the day, there are serious conclusions to be drawn.
You’ll come away with a renewed, deeper understanding of your business and what you want to get out of it, as well as the steps you need to take in order to make all that happen.
And then, we’ll also discuss what all this means financially.
This is the process we go through when we help businesses like yours develop their long-term, strategic plans. You can find out more about our super-intensive Just One Day sessions right here.
And we also take all our long-term clients through a similar process when we help them develop their budgets.
To discuss further how we can help you put together effective financial plans for the coming year, email me now or call us on 01279 647 447
I’m looking forward to helping you!
Garry
