Millionaire Day?

Believe it or not, May 20th, 2016 is officially known as Be a Millionaire Day. According to Google, Millionaire Day  “honours the desire to enjoy the freedom and self-empowerment associated with being financially secure.” But unless you are lucky enough to be among the roughly 1 in 14 million people who win the lottery in Canada, you have little chance of becoming a millionaire overnight!

Still, financial success is something the majority of us can achieve over time if the proper steps are taken. Financial Success is not necessarily measured by the dollar amount in your bank account alone, but also by the level of control you have over your finances. When you are controlling your finances instead of your finances controlling you, you will feel like a “millionaire”. Even when it’s not Millionaire Day!

So you may never have the winning lottery ticket, but if you’re reading this article and are looking for a team of professionals that can help you achieve financial success, you have had some luck after-all!! At parker simone, we help build your financial success from the ground up – which is why we call ourselves fiscal architects.

Here’s how we do it.

Establishing Goals

Identifying clear, achievable goals is a critical component for anyone’s financial plan. This includes short-term, mid-term and long-term goals.

• Short-term – saving up for a vacation or car
• Mid-term – saving up for a down payment on a house or wedding
• Long-term – saving up for retirement or a child’s education

It is one thing to have goals, but many of us don’t actually measure them ($ value and/or time frame). At first, this may seem daunting and unrealistic, but at parker simone, we will identify the choices that will help you achieve measurable goals.

Evaluating your Current Financial Situation

This may seem obvious, but many people are unaware of their current financial position. Typically, it is a result of not tracking expenses or bank balances on a regular basis and thus, not having a grasp on where each pay-cheque is going.

Another important factor to consider is debt. Whether it’s school debt or credit card debt, $5,000 or $50,000, it can be an impediment to achieving your financial success and we will ensure that managing debt is a priority.

Creating a Plan

Once we have established your goals and evaluated your current financial situation, we will create a personalized plan to execute and reach each one of your goals (short-term, mid-term and long-term). For example, there are endless articles on how to invest (TFSA, RRSP, non-registered accounts, etc), but depending on your specific needs, these may or may not apply to your unique situation. Given this, we will work together to determine what is best for you and create a plan that will put you on the path to making your dreams a reality.

What Next?

Because everyone’s definition (or calculation) of financial success is different, there is no simple “cookie cutter” formula to becoming financial secure. However, at parker simone, we understand the value of time spent in listening to your unique needs and developing a financial strategy that fits your vision. And just like architects, we work with you throughout the entire process.

On Millionaire Day we may not all be millionaires, but if you want to be more financially secure, then give us a call and let one of parker simone’s fiscal architects help build your financial freedom, from the ground up.

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Paula Ramirez is a Staff Accountant at parker simone LLP. Before joining the parker simone team, she attended the University of Waterloo where she obtained a Bachelor of Accounting and Financial Management and a Master of Accounting. Paula successfully passed the 2014 UFE and is in the process of obtaining her CPA, CA designation. She enjoys new experiences and is always up to an adventure; whether it’s travelling to a new city or exploring the diverse art and culture in Toronto.

Email: paula@parker-simone.com | Phone: 905-271-7977