Long-term FTW

18Mar10

Long-term planning can ensure happiness, health, and success in both the professional world and in personal relationships. Of course there may be times when plans are derailed by situations that no one can anticipate. However, acknowledging a flexible plan which pinpoints the risks that may occur along the way will help counter any unexpected roadblocks.

The following are situations in which long-term planning takes the win:

Health – With the unsurely nature of what impact the new healthcare reform will have over time, long-term health plans should be taken into account, especially if you know have genetic risk factors or reoccurring illnesses in your background. Some things you can do now are: open up a 401K (or even better a Roth IRA), get a gym membership (a lot of big businesses offer a generous corporate discount), and take your daily vitamins (if you don’t know which ones, check out WebMD or GNC).

Retirement – The ING Financial Calculator is a great tool that gives a basic summary of your possible retirement expectations based of the information you give them.

Career – Of course aspirations change over time, however setting aside a flexible professional development plan can help in a) organizing your thoughts b) keeping you on track with your end goal. For instance, I have a very basic scratch version of my development plan that I mapped out on Word. If you’re obsessed with planning like I am, setting aside a plan B and C will lessen any blows that you encounter to your primary aspiration.

@Work – Business plans are there for a reason. The main reason being that it helps consider the current details of your project/business as well as its future. Starting with a business plan will help save you money and time since you won’t have to revert back to the drawing board every time you encounter an issue. For startups, business plans serve as good management tools and help attract investors.