Where did all the money go?

Reading today’s paper I see a headline about a former musician who is practically destitute and unable to care for his medical needs. Very sad but unfortunately not that unusual. We hear these stories all of the time. The money is good at one point and then it disappears.

We’ve talked a lot about saving for retirement but it occurred to me that it could be even more difficult for those who don’t earn steady incomes. They may earn a lot in one month or year and practically nothing in the next. Unfortunately earning a lot can be deceptive because you may think that it will always be there. It happens with best selling authors, artistes and even lottery winners – the money is there and then it goes and in many cases the person is worse off than they were before. Even worse than the loss of money is the loss of self-esteem that goes along with it. Many people fall into depression when they realize how they have squandered a windfall and now have nothing to show for it.

So, what to do if you have a windfall of one type or another. This may be my shortest blog ever because I have one answer – get professional advice and help! A financial planner will help you to make a realistic budget and to put the rest of your money to work for you. Taking that step sooner rather than later gets you in the habit of living conservatively and most importantly restricts your making careless financial mistakes that you can’t recover from. These include giving large gifts to family members and hangers on when you really can’t afford to do so despite appearances. Wealth can be a blessing but you need to nurture it so that it continues to be so! Your financial planner can be particularly helpful in setting up a pension plan so that you have enough for your retirement years.

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