Sorted header abstract pattern
Sort my 6 Steps Tools Guides Blog More
Search Icon search small

back iconBack

Start here

Sort my...
A man and woman are walking together outdoors and looking happy

back iconBack

Start here

6 steps to get your money Sorted

back iconBack

All tools

Tools

back iconBack

View all

back iconBack

View all

back iconBack

More Sorted Info

Blogs
View all

Budgeting

Why it’s better to start than be perfect

1 May 2017
Reading time: 3 minutes


Posted by Tom Hartmann , 0 Comments

“The perfect is the enemy of the good,” it’s said. Sometimes we want something to be so perfect, we end up not even creating something good.

Needing things to be perfect is also the enemy of just getting started. Waiting for Mercury to not be in retrograde and for stars to align before making a move just doesn’t cut it. (Astrology fans will know that’s about to happen now anyway, so we officially have no excuses.) There may never be a “perfect” time.

So much about managing money is about tweaking our settings in the present. Small adjustments like setting up an automatic payment to “pay ourselves first” into a separate account – which takes all of 15 minutes online – can reroute our finances to fantastically different results.

We’re actually a lot more in control than it seems sometimes. Not ultimate control, mind you, but definitely enough to nudge the rudder, trim our sails and clearly change direction.

So what’s your course for the year ahead and beyond?

Any of these can be achieved in the months to come by setting up an automatic payment into a savings account. Sorted’s goal planner and savings calculator can help us put it in writing and do the sums, but really it’s about tweaking our online banking. We all just need to decide now.

Once they’re set up, these slight adjustments are typically out of sight, out of mind. They grow gradually in the background, and then pleasantly surprise us when it’s spending time.

What if we want it all?

Of course, we may want all the things on that list above – and a whole lot of others, too. It would be “perfect” to have them all in place.

But beware: having too many options is just another “enemy” of getting started. We just need to pick one to get things underway, to get some momentum happening. What’s most important to us right now?

Once we have a new norm in place, it won’t be long before we have something to show for it.

This present bodes well for the future, too

These are the same sort of tweaks that build significant wealth in the long term, as investment funds are built on regularly drip-feeding into the market and taking advantage of compounding interest.

As seen in this investor kickstarter example, if we leave $10,000 in a growth fund for 25 years it becomes $19,400. Add $50 a week, on the other hand, and it becomes $121,700. Those regular contributions harness the market.

This is how we can tackle the big challenges, like funding retirements and our ever-longer lives. By starting in the present, we can make a huge difference for the future – for ourselves, our whānau, our communities.

Comments (0)

Comments

No one has commented on this page yet.

RSS feed for comments on this page | RSS feed for all comments

Tags
Kids and money Budgeting Goals Scam alert Money mindset KiwiSaver Managing debt Money tips Investing

Recent Comments

Who’s teaching your daughter (or niece, or granddaughter) about money?
1 Comment

My Money Sorted: Hilary Barry
2 Comments

My Money Sorted: Ben
3 Comments

My Money Sorted: Daniel
1 Comment

8 ways to hack Christmas when you’re stretching the budget
6 Comments

6 ways to shop smarter this Black Friday
1 Comment

sign up bar pattern
sign up bar icon

Want help with your money coming straight to your inbox? Sign up to Sorted.