Who, What, When, Where & Why

 

WHO…WHAT…WHEN…WHERE…WHY.  The “five W’s” - we all learned about them in elementary school, but why am I mentioning these “W’s” in a financial planning BLOG, you ask?

It turns out that the five W’s can help you to take control of your financial life.  Whether you are new to financial planning or well established, it is important have a clear understanding of YOUR five W’s:

WHO are your key financial advisors (financial planner, CPA, attorney, insurance agent, etc.)?

WHAT do you have (assets, accounts, policies, benefits, etc.)?

WHEN did you acquire each piece of your financial puzzle (maturity dates, etc.)

WHERE are your assets and important documents held or stored?

WHY do you have what you have and how does this fit into your overall financial plan?

Taking an inventory of what you have and recording the information in document form is important for a couple of key reasons:

  • For you, it is a reference guide so that key information is not lost or forgotten.
  • For your family and or future durable power of attorney/executor, it is an invaluable guide to assist in handling your financial affairs when you are unable to handle them yourself.

HOW do you get started on your “five W’s”?  For a free copy of the Center’s Personal Record Keeping Document, go to https://static1.squarespace.com/static/54341a03e4b08690c01bc8de/54dcf260e4b018fb5adfbec4/54dcf263e4b018fb5adfcdbe/1303923614337/record_system.pdf