Whatever financial challenge you’re facing, you can put yourself in a better financial position by planning now and investing for the long term. The sooner you start, the sooner you’ll get on track.

Investing for the long term is a marathon, not a sprint. An investment’s annual return provides perspective over time. #FinancialLiteracyMonth https://vgi.vg/2Kyh3a3

Goals: Create clear, appropriate investment goals. . Create appropriate investment goals you can measure and attain. Defining your goals clearly and planning realistic ways to achieve them can help protect you from common mistakes that could derail your progress. https://vgi.vg/3c9ky3b #FinancialLiteracy

Balance: Develop a suitable asset allocation using broadly diversified funds. Create a sound investment strategy by choosing an asset allocation in line with your financial objectives. Build your allocation based on reasonable expectations and diversify your portfolio to avoid exposure to unnecessary risks. Balance is the key: https://vgi.vg/3f7Qh6u #FinancialLiteracy

Costs: Minimize costs. Markets are unpredictable. Costs are forever. The lower your costs, the greater your share of an investment’s return. And research suggests lower-cost investments outperform higher-cost alternatives. You can’t control the markets, but you can control your costs and tax liability: https://vgi.vg/2z6fQEv #FinancialLiteracy

Discipline: Maintain perspective and long term discipline. Investing can provoke strong emotions. During times of market uncertainty, you may find yourself tempted to make impulsive decisions or you may experience “paralysis by analysis,” unable to decide on how best to implement an effective investment strategy or when to rebalance your portfolio. Discipline and perspective can help you remain committed to a long-term investment philosophy through periods of market uncertainty. https://vgi.vg/3c8ihFg