In this final course of Step 1, you'll prioritize goals. In doing so, you will learn steps for balancing more than one non-negotiable goal from an investing standpoint. Once finished, you will have completed the first step of the PRISM process.
Reflect
As we finish the first step of prioritizing your goals, we want to reflect on the planning we've conducted over the last few weeks. Think about the worksheets you filled out and how they will serve as building blocks for your future investment journey. Ranking your goals from most to least important will help you determine what takes priority over other vital investment objectives. Unfortunately, they can't all be #1; therefore, we have to make the tough decision to prioritize certain targets so we can accurately plan for them.
Engage
We've asked you to share your short and long-term goals, but we haven't asked you to rank them from most least important to most (1 being most important and 5 being least). After you've ranked your goals, share with us which non-negotiable goals outranked others and why.
Example
- Retirement
- Pay for my parent's long-term care/end of life expenses if need be
- Pay off mortgage to live debt free
- Funding travel expenses
- Donate to charitable organizations
After taking a look at my list, I realized that traveling would have to be moved down on my list – but is still equally important. Retirement is non-negotiable and being able to afford everyday living expenses is crucial. Another goal I had to move down a ranking was to pay off my mortgage, because I knew that making sure I saved/invested enough money to fund my parent's long-term care/end of life expenses was non-negotiable – even though they both are on my top five investment goal list. Please fill out the attached worksheet! You can also find it in the Library.
NOTE: If you've completed all seven lessons of the PRISM Academy Step 1: "P - Prioritizing Your Goals", you will receive a badge for completion. Next Thursday, we will be releasing the first lesson of Step 2: "R - Recognizing your risk tolerance and allocation".
ANNOUNCEMENT: We will be hosting our second PRISM Academy Office Hours "Brunch" on Monday, November 15, 2021 at 11:30 a.m. CDT. You can register for this interactive Q&A session at aaii.com/webinars.
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Jenna Brashear
AAII Community Manager
Chicago, IL
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