The past year has been such an experience in uncertainty, I find myself needing to tread carefully in just about everything I do. With so many unknowns and what-ifs surrounding me, the things that are certain become startlingly clear. Time is precious. Figuring out where to focus energy requires a reckoning with what is truly most important and a paring away of what is no longer serving me.
Last summer I had an encounter with a bear in Grand Tetons National Park that brought me a strong lesson about what can happen when I am less than careful and unprepared. Unscathed but shaken, that experience powerfully reminded me not to take nature, or anything, for granted.
In my role as a financial planner I work with clients to navigate the maze of the certain and the uncertain in so many ways. We cannot predict what the markets will do. We do not know for certain how long each of us will live, be healthy, keep our jobs. We don’t know when and how tax and other laws will change in the future, upending our best laid plans. All the while there are loved ones to care for and protect, futures to plan for and pressing daily needs to attend to.
The world is changing rapidly. Information overload is all around. The pull of anxiety seems to be around every corner. At times like these, we need to work diligently to keep focused on the goals that live in our hearts. It takes courage to continue to make plans and carry out the steps of those plans in the face of the unknown.
How do I make plans and how do I help my clients plan? It begins with identifying what is most important and clarifying what needs to be done to nurture, grow and protect those things. Sometimes it begins with creating an emergency savings goal. If owning a home or relocating to a new place is a priority, much must be done to prepare for such an event. Often we need to review life insurance or legacy plans. When it comes to investing, we work together to connect goals, values, timelines and risk to the way we chose to allocate precious savings. And because change is the nature of life, we must constantly adjust and refine the plans to align with whatever may arise.
Finding ways to remain calm and focused when chaos abounds is a challenge. I practice every day with varying degrees of success. What I have found is that the practice itself provides comfort. It is something to anchor me as I tread carefully in this uncertain world.
Jennipher Lommen is a Certified Financial Planner TM and Enrolled Agent who offers comprehensive financial planning advice to clients in Santa Cruz, CA and beyond.
