In recent months, the ups and downs of the stock market might feel more like a roller coaster ride which is enough to upset anyone’s stomach. While we are all looking for those green arrows, there can be opportunity in the red arrows.

It’s a new year, fresh start…and that includes finances! When the clock strikes 12 and the calendar flips over to a new year, it’s often a fresh start for many. While there are many resolutions and goals made, the start of a new year is always an interesting time both personally and professionally.

Fall happens to be one of my favorite times of the year. The heat of the summer is finally starting to subside and of course, it’s the beginning of football season. I spend many weekends taking in college and professional football and as I watch the ups and downs of America’s game it got me thinking. From a strategic and thought process, football and finance have many parallels.

As we move through life most of us live in the now worrying about getting to work on time, what to have for dinner, what sport do the kids have after school, and the list goes on. But what happens when the unexpected happens? Most of us have been there. The loss of a job, an unexpected divorce, or the death of a loved one, these life events can really throw things into upheaval.

What does your income look like in retirement? Will you need to work part-time? Do you want to start a new business? Do you want to travel the world? These are all questions to ask yourself when retirement planning. To retirement plan is to plan for what you want your life to look like after paid work ends and that takes on many different forms in today’s world.

It’s hard to believe the year is already half over! Kids are out of school and days are filled with sunshine, lake days and plenty of sunscreen.