4 Financial Planning Tips to make your dreams a reality

 

Do our financial circumstances have to dictate how our life pans out? Not necessarily. A bit of fiscal discipline and planning right from the early years doesn't just fulfil all those dreams but can also ensure a smooth future for yourself and your loved ones!

Here's how you can prepare to set sail for the great voyage for life -

Identify your passion

It is necessary to sift your ephemeral hobbies from your long lasting passion. Identify your true skills, recognise the spheres you excel in and then pour your energies into making it a lifetime mission. This spells hard work, sacrifice and dedication but if you have your heart set on making your passion into your vocation, nothing can stop you from tasting success!

Set your goals

Often, mere passion isn't enough. You need to set clear goals, whether professional or personal, and set deadlines for yourself. Your goals could be mastering a skill, getting into a national sports team or getting that professional degree from a university abroad. These definite goals will help you chart your financial goals as well, as you realise the monetary planning you will need to shoulder to reach there.

Get closer to fulfilling your goals by supplementing your day job with additional income source and eliminating unnecessary expenses.

Discipline & Consistency

No goal can be achieved if we do not have a disciplined approach. Our goals can be achieved only if we are consistently working on it and are determined to top in our chosen line of work. Here is where financial discipline comes into play. Starting at an early age, if you begin to put aside a part of your earnings into prudent investments, you can watch your wealth grow and have a nice nest egg by the time you are ready to hang up your boots. However, it is important that such savings and investment choices are well researched and not rushed into.

Interestingly, goal setting, disciplined savings and prudent investments are not the preserve only of the Warren Buffetts of the world. You don't have to be a finance wiz to manage your expenses, set aside a portion of your earnings every month, and plan your targets well in advance. A little bit of foresight and a good helping of common sense can help you achieve your dreams realistically. You don't have to take our word for it. Our country has an array of talented role models who have risen from humble beginnings, and by sheer dint of patience, hard work and talent, made it to the top of their spheres in a short span of time only by successfully managing their finances and investing wisely. Here are some inspiring stories.

Lessons from young achievers

They come from small town, humble backgrounds, don't boast great connections or ancestral wealth to back their ambitions. But there's a common factor that binds these millennials who have made it big – patience, perseverance and planning.

There are those like Olympic medallist Sakshi Malik or singer cum music composer, Jasleen Royal, who have beaten professional and financial odds and made it big in their respective fields without the aid of any godfathers! Wrestling star Sakshi, defied all odds learnt the value of discipline from her sport, knows the same stands true for investments and has been rigorously planning and ploughing back her earnings into building a dream sports training centre for young wrestlers.

Jasleen Royal on the other hand is self made professional; with no formal training in music she pursued her passion from her childhood. She saved up from her earnings as a music teacher to buy her own keyboard and later to produce her first YouTube video, 'Pancchi Hojawan'! Jasleen, better known today for her inimitable vocals in Punjabi numbers like 'Din Shagna Da', understands the value of savings and investing in the right assets at the right time.

Stand up comic and popular story teller Zakir Khan and actor Jeetendra Kumar are big names in digital entertainment media today, but growing up, both had their share of dealing with financial crunches. Both enjoy the fiscal perks of being in the limelight, but have reached the pinnacles of their careers through disciplined savings and regular investments at the right time!

Zakir, who commands a huge fan base and yet aspires to be the most loved comedian in the country, says he uses his insecurity as an artist to stay grounded at all times. Despite his successes, he hasn't let his expenses skyrocket and says he believes in consistent and disciplined approaches to everything, including investments. Jeetendra Kumar, aka Jeetu, one of the better known faces across web series today, doesn't take his success lightly either. He says he has learnt to strike the right balance between following your passion and managing your wealth and works towards fulfilling his and his family's dreams with the right investments at the right time.

A talented musician, Ritviz dropped out of school to focus on his passion for music, but the level headed icon never lost sight of his financial goals. Today, after his 'Udd Gaye' track catapulted his name to the top of the music charts, he continues to spend 16 hours a day making music. A strong believer of making dreams turn into reality, Ritviz believes in saving for the future. The artist in him knows that even if he has to take a creative break, it is only his well-timed savings and investments that will stand him in good stead!

Be it sports or the creative arts, these young achievers set an example for us too, that it is necessary to have a firm head on your shoulders even as you pursue your passion with a driven heart. With HDFC Life Click 2 Wealth, you can invest in your future goals and dreams while enjoying the peace of mind that comes with having a life cover. If you haven't got your finances in order just yet, start investing today.

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