Your Financial Life Will Be A Mess Without This!

Welcome to the eighth installment of our 10-week video series, which will help you avoid the most common red flags that are keeping you broke. If you’d like to follow along with our FREE guide, you can download your copy here.

The eighth red flag we’re covering today is you don't have a game plan for your future.

It's no secret that we're getting older. The older I get, the faster time seems to go. I'm sure that some of you reading this can relate.

Years ago, before I became a financial coach, I was working in the sign industry. I was a sales manager of a small team, and I had an older man named Bill who managed a department in our small company. Bill was in his early sixties.

On an ordinary day, a few of us, Bill included were discussing money and finances, a favorite topic of mine. During this conversation, I asked Bill a question. I asked, "Bill, if you could go back and do anything differently when it came to managing your money, what would it be?"

Bill was a smart guy, a good salesperson who had his stuff together, but Bill couldn't come up with an immediate answer for me, so he said, "Brad, you know what? Let me think about that."

Later that afternoon he pops in my office. He says, "Regarding that question you asked me earlier about what I would do differently, I wish I would have known what to do with the money I was making and had a better plan for it."

I love learning from experienced individuals—people who have lived life longer than me and have learned some lessons. There is great wisdom to gain from other people's experiences.

Bill shared some wisdom with me that day, and now I want to share it with you.

One commonality I see with many of the people I serve who are seeking financial guidance and coaching is that they don't have a solid game plan.

I'm sure you've heard how important goal setting is. You've got those short-term goals and those long-term goals. But many people, unfortunately, don't have those when it comes to their finances. Sadly, this is why many people find themselves broke.

Why? Without sound financial goals that you're committed to, the latest and greatest things will always distract you. Instead of making smart financial decisions with your head and being proactive, most of your financial decisions you will make out of emotion. Before you know it, years can go by, and you've made no financial improvement. Scary to think about, but many of us make our situations worse as time goes on, not better.

Most people who are living paycheck-to-paycheck are living for today and maybe tomorrow. If you look at people who are successful, whether it's with money, careers, parenting, health, fitness, or anything in life, all of them have one characteristic. They had specific goals, and they knew what the end result would look like. Then they went about the business of making it happen with focus and intensity.

Having success with saving, paying down debt, having the money to chase your dreams and do the things you want in life all starts with a solid plan. It doesn't happen by accident.

So start thinking about this stuff. What do you really want? What does your future look like? How are you going to get there? What's it going to take to make it your reality?

Those who don't take the time to create a sound financial plan will always be living a life being reactive and being controlled by their emotions. The end result isn't good, and they will be the ones looking back and saying with regret, "I wish I would have known what to do with the money I was making and had a better plan for it."

Don't worry about all the past financial mistakes you may have made. Today is a new day to start creating your brand new financial plan.