The Dreaded Direct Question

(Please have a glass of water within reach before reading this article.)

Your personal financial planning is the topic of discussion here today, but not quite yet. First I would like to bring your attention to the issue of bragging.

The other day I was carrying on about how well our website was doing on the various search engines. If you typed in financial planning Victoria, or financial planner Victoria, or CFP BC, our site ranked very well on the major search engines. But I was not bragging about this to a dummy. Unfortunately not. Because this person, who shall remain nameless, asked me a very simple question:

"Is it working?"

"Huh?" I thought, feeling like I was suddenly part of a butterfly collection.

"Is it working? Are you getting new clients this way?"

The room was beginning the spin.

"Can I have some wa -wa?" I asked woozily as I crumbled to the floor.

Sometimes we get so caught up in the process of doing things, like optimizing websites for search engines, we lose sight of what standard of measurement we should be using to determine how we're doing. In my case, I was using how well our website ranked for various search terms, instead of whether we were actually gaining any business from the web. Duh!

This often occurs where peoples' financial planning is concerned. It is very easy to get stuck in the process of saving money, or managing money, but lose sight of whether or not what you're doing is actually working to help you achieve your goals. So, if you think about your financial goals, and then think about how you are doing, the same question applies?

"Is it working?"

There are three possible answers to this question and they are: "Yes", "I don't know", and "Can I have some wa ?wa?"

Realizing that what you are doing is not working, is not pleasant. Nor is it pleasant to realize the giddy pleasure of progress you thought was your lot, is no more. You may look a bit ridiculous to yourself for a bit, but if you're like me, that's nothing new.

So, for example, if your primary financial benchmark is retirement, does it look like you will be able to retire when you want, with the kind of income you need?

"Hey! You okay? Wake up. Here. Drink this."

About The Author

Rick Hoogendoorn is an 'associate' and misguided webmaster with Cheri Crause & Associates Inc. Cheri Crause is a certified financial planner in Victoria, BC.

rick.hoogendoorn@shaw.ca

---

Google News Updated : Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:51:33 GMT 1.5 million G1 Android phones pre-ordered - TG Daily Product Reviews 1.5 million G1 Android phones pre-ordered TG Daily - 6 hours ago By Wolfgang Gruener Chicago (IL) - T-Mobile’s upcoming G1 may not be the best-looking iPhone rival, it may not have the most complete feature set and T-Mobile may have undersold the device at the recent launch event. Get ready for next-gen mobile InfoWorld HTC G1 Android Phone Racks up 1.5 Million Pre-orders eFluxMedia Brighthand - InformationWeek - ReadWriteWeb - ZDNet all 153 news articles Publ.Date : Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:21:21 GMT European, Asian markets bounce back - The Associated Press Vancouver Sun European, Asian markets bounce back The Associated Press - 1 hour ago LONDON (AP) - European markets opened strongly Monday following Asia's lead in response to the widespread government efforts over the weekend to shore up the world's troubled financial system. The financial crisis A light at the end of the tunnel? Economist World stock markets welcome European bank rescue AFP MSN Money - New York Times - New Straits Times - Voice of America all 769 news articles Publ.Date : Mon, 13 Oct 2008 10:23:04 GMT UK government takes stake in three banks - CNN International Canada.com UK government takes stake in three banks CNN International - 32 minutes ago LONDON, England (CNN) -- The British government on Monday said it would make a multi-billion investment in three of the country's major banks to help them through the "first financial crisis of the global age. In quotes: Bank bail-out reaction BBC News TEXT-Lloyds TSB terms for acquisition of HBOS Reuters guardian.co.uk - Wall Street Journal - Bloomberg - AFP all 1,923 news articles Publ.Date : Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:18:47 GMT Forecast: Summery Sunshine Sticks Around - Washington Post Chicagoist Forecast: Summery Sunshine Sticks Around Washington Post - 2 hours ago Columbus Day will feel a lot more like Labor Day as temperatures climb to around 80 degrees. This unseasonably warm weather will continue for the next several days. Enjoy a warm, sunny Columbus Day Times Herald-Record Beautiful start to the work week The Star-Ledger - NJ.com The Capital Times - Journal and Courier - Richmond Times Dispatch - The Virginian-Pilot all 241 news articles Publ.Date : Mon, 13 Oct 2008 09:03:26 GMT Dodgers stand up to Phillies in Game 3 win - FOXSports.com Washington Post Dodgers stand up to Phillies in Game 3 win FOXSports.com - 4 hours ago by Ken Rosenthal Ken Rosenthal has been the senior baseball writer for FOXSports.com since Aug. 2005. He appears weekly on the FSN Baseball Report and MLB on FOX. LA revitalized at Moyer's expense MLB.com Kuroda's pitch serves its purpose for Dodgers USA Today New York Times - Los Angeles Times - Boston Globe - Philadelphia Daily News all 2,467 news articles Publ.Date : Mon, 13 Oct 2008 07:00:36 GMT Fantastic finishes: 5 NFL games down to the wire - Washington Post Washington Post Fantastic finishes: 5 NFL games down to the wire Washington Post - 3 hours ago Dallas Cowboys' Mat McBriar (1) has his punt blocked by Arizona Cardinals' Sean Morey as Monty Beisel (52) looks on during overtime of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008 in Glendale, Ariz. Blocked punt downs Dallas San Francisco Chronicle Backups Burst Through Line and Lift Cardinals in Overtime New York Times Sports Network - FOXSports.com - Houston Chronicle - Philadelphia Inquirer all 749 news articles Publ.Date : Mon, 13 Oct 2008 08:15:50 GMT Manatee dies before reaching rehab site - Boston Globe WHDH-TV Manatee dies before reaching rehab site Boston Globe - 4 hours ago By Emily Canal After a 27-hour trip to Florida, Dennis the manatee, rescued from the frigid waters of Cape Cod, died in Orlando yesterday as SeaWorld employees carted the mammal to a rehabilitation center. Video: Rescued Manatee Dies After Mass. Rescue AssociatedPress Manatee rescued off Cape Cod dies en route to Florida Sea World New York Daily News WFLA - eFluxMedia - Cape Cod Times - South Coast Today all 565 news articles Publ.Date : Mon, 13 Oct 2008 07:21:21 GMT RSS feeds Increase Traffic

PARLOT::Ebooks, Scripts, Websites, and more...

Adsense websites

Forex Trading Best Practices

FOREX, the term for the FOReign EXchange market, is an... Read More

Retirement is Never Urgent Until

If you're like many people, your retirement savings have not... Read More

Creating a Financial Future--Putting Your Plan Into Action Part 2

Real Estate can be a useful tool for investing. The... Read More

Discipline in Trading and Investing

The one thing I can think of that most affects... Read More

Investing: The Art Of Making Your Money Work For You

There is a lot to know about investing. It all... Read More

It Is Never Too Early To Start A Roth IRA!

The Roth is kind of weird until you get used... Read More

The Myth of the Earnings Yield

AbstractA very slim minority of firms distribute dividends. This truism... Read More

Angels Investors and Their Networks

What is an Angel Investor? An Angel is usually a... Read More

Invisible Mutual Fund Fees Erode Your Returns!

Many investors think that investing in mutual funds is free.... Read More

Expand Your Pool of Investors for Your Company

If you own a company that sells complicated products and... Read More

The Basics of Tax-Free UK Financial Spread Betting

Financial Spread Betting (or Trading) offers a tax free method... Read More

Retirement Is A Scary Proposition If Youre Without A Plan, And Running Out Of Time

Of the 75 million baby boomers nearing retirement today, many... Read More

Why the Rich Keep Getting Richer

Rich people: fortunate, lucky, selfish, and arrogant? Or highly educated,... Read More

How to Invest Your Money

Think carefully on how to invest your money because if... Read More

Volatile Oil

The Light Crude Continuous Contract fell from $67.70 a barrel... Read More

Foreign Investing - US Investors Still Missing Out?

Investors are still too slowly realizing what the academics have... Read More

Making It Second Nature

Not long ago I was laying on my son's floor... Read More

Delist My Corporation Please

It use to be said that once a company was... Read More

How To Find An Investment Advisor

Do you think you need an Investment Advisor? Hold on... Read More

The Cost of Green Eggs and Ham

Young readers know that March 4th is the birthday of... Read More

Franchise Investing, Franchise Opportunities and Franchising Renewals

Have you considered buying a franchise instead of trying to... Read More

Overbought/Oversold

Has your broker ever told you that a stock is... Read More

Bad News - Why The Financial News Media Can Cost You Money!

The communication innovations we have around us today like the... Read More

The Power of Small Numbers: Trading Success is Based on Consistency, Not Home Runs

Online trading is so seductive - just sit, click, and... Read More

Copy Cat or How to Use a Successful Trading System

How many books have you read about successful traders? How... Read More