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[L513]Long Term Strategic Planning

by Peter Wright, Pet

Many planners still consider "strategic" to be synonymous with "long-term". Executives enjoy long term strategic planning because it's usually pure fantasy. Consultants love to do long term planning exercises because they make everyone feel good. Yet long planning horizons are the root cause of visions and strategies that are too motherhood to be successfully executed. According to Peter Wright of The Planning Group "when we take executive teams through an exercise to create a 2-3 year practical vision, they are visibly uneasy. If they commit to a vision of the company only 8-12 quarters away, real plans will need to be underway within a few months just to be on track."

This sense of urgency is the best reason to keep planning horizons short. Bridging the gap between strategy and execution is difficult, and a vision that is both practical and compelling is the best foundation. A vision should drive the articulation of an organization's most crucial priorities, its "strategic imperatives", as well as a solid plan for how to achieve those priorities. Without that short, practical vision, turning strategy into action is almost impossible.

There is one important caveat: strategic planning, in particular vision statements should never have a horizon that is too short. A vision for an organization that is only 12 months away, for example, is likely unrealistic, and can cause a sense of hopelessness. This can be just as damaging to successful execution as a vision that is too long.

There is a place for a very high level, longer term strategic vision for your firm, but don't let it be a substitute for a practical vision and strategy that will be the drivers of real action. Keep your business planning horizon between 2-3 years to create plans that are practical, compelling, and stand a fighting chance of execution.

The old adage says Haste makes Waste, and caution is your only friend. How true such a proverb is when it comes to the world of personal financial planning. Caution means that you stop and look at all options before making any decisions in order to ensure that more often than not the result is a sound decision with a positive outcome. This step is almost mandatory when dealing with issues of financial planning, 401(k)s, and future money needs like retirement funds, etc. Poor financial decisions can result in catastrophic consequences like late payment, a deteriorating credit rating and even bankruptcy.

When investing in real estate for short term purchases, one of the options you may be considering is an interest only mortgage. These can be a tricky investment and so you may want to consult with your financial advisor, before entering into a mortgage of this type. And, since it really can't be considered a piece of your investment portfolio, a will more than likely be part of a business venture or investment. This is where the looking at all the options really comes into play. An interest only mortgage is not a good financing option when you are looking at purchasing a piece of property for a long-term investment purpose or are going to claim capital gains on the property. Interest-only mortgages are for quick profit transactions. You get in, and you get out. No hanging around in the middle. In. Out. Fast. Easy. Why do I say that? Because interest only mortgages do not allow for an increase in value to you, there isn't an equity growing measure included so you can't get more out of the transaction, really; and, your investment debt never decreases.

Short-term implications and considerations of interest only mortgages have one main point. The payments are pretty low during the term of the payment, but that is simply because the overall liability is never going down. Other than that, this mortgage product really shouldn't be a regular item of consideration in your financial planning portfolio.

The interest only mortgage offers little in the way of tax deferred savings when compared to the bigger products like IRAs, MSAs, and even 401(k)s. Sure the interest is tax deductible, but not at a one-to-one ratio. Even SEPs for the self-employed individual can have a one-to-one ratio of tax savings.

Over the long-term financial planning picture, if you were to consider an interest only mortgage in comparison to a regularly amortized mortgage you would see that when the regularly amortized loan is paid out, there is still a long line of payments to be made on the interest only loan. The amount of savings could be quite substantial if you consider the time value of money. Time value is easy to understand once you learn it. The basic concept is that the dollar is worth more today than it will be worth tomorrow (history seems to confirm this). So money put in savings today, will ultimately be worth more than money you start saving in ten or fifteen years. This is why financial planners urge folks to plan for retirement at such an early age instead of waiting until age 35 or 40 to start saving for the future.

While an interest only mortgage may seem like a viable option to you, be wary and consider all the other possibilities. Chances are a reputable financial planner will have other options that benefit you more in the long run.

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About Author

Both Peter Wright & Johnathan Bakers are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Peter Wright has sinced written about articles on various topics from Strategic Planning, Self Improvement and Motivation. Over the years of developing business plans with North America's largest companies, Peter has created many successful tools, models, and practices that are highly applicable to the. Peter Wright's top article generates over 2400 views. to your Favourites.

Johnathan Bakers has sinced written about articles on various topics from Home Management, Car Rental and Food and Drink. Johnathan Bakers is writing especially for http://www.debtania.com , an online publication covering information on personal finance . You might come across his articles on. Johnathan Bakers's top article generates over 27100 views. to your Favourites.