2. Personal financial planning… how to start?

2.1. Collect the financial information
The important point to begin the financial planning is to check your current financial status by first collecting the information from the documents that is related to your money. For example: current cash, bank account balance, salary or monthly income, billings, investments, loan contacts, etc. Then divide the information into 4 categories:

2.2. Set the good financial goal
The good financial goal is related to the “personal goal” which different from each person. The basic definition of the personal goal is the time that we think we are successful; it is measured by your own satisfaction. Most of the time, the secure financial status helps us on achieving the goal.
If we only to find the money without carefully plan how to use it, it might be like working too hard. So, we should set our financial goal before planning how to manage it.
The good financial goal must contain the following 3 rules:
2.2.1.      It is possible to achieve it (Achievable).
2.2.2.      It can be measured obviously (Measurable).
2.2.3.      Must have time limit (Timeframe) may divide into 3 periods:
- Short-term Goal: must be achieved in a year.
- Intermediate-term Goal: must be achieved in 5 years.
- Long-term Goal: must be achieved in more than 5 years.

2.3. Planning
Terminologically if we are planning for a trip
# First step
Collecting: the financial information, like we check about how many free days we have, how much money and how many people will go with us, etc.
# Second step
Set the goal: for instance if the desired places to visit is Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Mae Hong Son, and the goal is holiday trip.
# Third step
Plan the trip: we can go by using many different ways on the road and there are many different places waiting us to visit. We must carefully decide which places to go or we will get lost, no place to stay, didn’t visit the important places. It wastes the time, the gasoline and we got to stay in the expensive hotel. If we planned well on which places to visit first and last, which are the most convenient ways, are there any good place to stay. We don’t use much time in planning and it is worthwhile.

2.4. The implementation
We will not see the beautiful places even if we have set the goal and had the good plan, but at last we didn’t go anywhere.
The financial planning that we have made might be useless if there is nothing with it or it is the slow action, how long the clock ticked the further your goal to be achieved and it will affect your goal and the other plans.
The important key to achieve the financial goal is the intention and strictly follow the plan.

2.5. Revise the plan
People who cannot achieve their financial goal are mainly caused by the lack of strict or they can’t follow the financial plan.
In another way, the inflexible financial plan may not be achieved even we strictly to follow it. Because the financial plan we have made may be affected by many factors such as: career stability, current economic and social status, payment rate, government’s policy, political status – these factors are vary and changing all time.
So, the financial plan must be reviewed and revised to fit the current status all the time, and to make the goal possible and achievable.