Regardless of when you begin to accumulate wealth, a successful plan will require:

• A long-term investment strategy
• A commitment to seeing that strategy through
• An understanding of your tolerance for risk

As you go through the many stages of your life, your ability to set money aside will fluctuate. This fluctuation must be factored into your long-term accumulation strategy.

Today, people retire earlier and live longer than previous generations. A successful plan requires asset accumulation paired with strategies that can help ensure you don't outlive your money. But in life, there are other financial factors that must also be considered. For instance:

• Helping children afford college costs
• Taking advantage of the equity markets without undue risk of loss
• Reducing your dependence on uncertain sources of future retirement income, such as Social Security or company pension plans.

The simple phrase has been said for years; "Some plans work. Having no plans never works".

Not that a professional financial advisor stated the phrase in so basic of terms. However, it is noted that having any type of planning is better than not having a plan at all. A financial plan does not have to be done in volumes. It just has to speak volumes about what you want to accomplish, which we refer to as your objectives. The financial plan also provides instructions on how these objectives may be pursued.

A financial plan serves as an agreement between the client and the advisor to establish a set of instructions, a desired rate of return and the boundaries in which the advisor can work. If these things are not addressed, how can the advisor conduct themselves with your objectives in mind? We a Summit Wealth Planning value and respect the time needed to prepare, design and follow a financial plan. We consider it one of the fundamental parts of working together and building a relationship.

In the event you have a financial windfall, the financial planning process can be available as a great starting point in the decisions to be made. Not everyone wins the lottery, however, there are many cases where settlements, estates, and life insurance proceeds can become large sums of funds needing proper guidance and support for making the appropriate decisions.

Investing in a 401k plan is essential for the vast majority of American citizens to achieve a successful and happy retirement. In fact, if managed correctly, a 401k plan allows investors to work toward an early and wealthy retirement.

Start Your 401k Early

It's never too early or too late to start saving in a 401k plan. Even if you're in your 40s or 50s, there's still time to build a significcant nest egg for retirement. Therefore, there's not a magical age to start saving in a 401k plan, but rather this simple savings advice: The best time to start saving in a 401k plan is yesterday, the second-best time to start saving in a 401k plan is today, and the worst time to start saving in a 401k is tomorrow.

Understanding tax strategies and managing your tax bill should be part of any sound financial approach. Some taxes can be deferred, and others can be managed through tax-efficient investing. With careful and consistent preparation, you may be able to manage the impact of taxes on your financial efforts.

We can plan for things and events in our lives. Yet, there are times when we are faced with unexpected changes. Retirement planning may need changes from a change of employer, a lay-off, spouse enters or leaves the workforce, or a disability. Having advisors who specialize in providing well thought out choices for various changes in retirement planning can offer strategies, suggestions and guidance.

It can be 5, 10, 15, years into the future or just next week. Retirement can become a great transition where your working career has provided resources to engage in leisure, travel, and just enjoying having freedom over your day.

Effective estate management enables you to manage your affairs during your lifetime and control the distribution of your wealth after death. An effective estate strategy can spell out your healthcare wishes and ensure that they're carried out - even if you are unable to communicate. It can even designate someone to manage your financial affairs should you be unable to do so.