To hit the gym, to do an at home program, to hit the wild out doors or to do a combination of all of them, that is the question. When deciding where to workout the choices can be endless. For some there is no question as to which one is right, but if you are like me all of them can work but sometimes finding the right one for right now is the actual problem.
This same problem can occur when looking at stocks or mutual funds for your investments. So how do you decide what is the right answer for you? Using three easy steps you can make your choice and move forward!
Research
The first step is to research each option and get the basic facts. The more information you have the better informed your decisions are. Create a list of traits that you want to discover and can eventually transfer to a pros and cons list. So your research on gyms could include the cost, the time commitment to travel, and hours open. With mutual funds, you may research what you need to do to invest, and what you need to know.
Evaluate
After you have gathered all of your information, the next thing to do is to evaluate how what you found fits into your personality and life style. The best way to do this is with a pros and cons list. This is an easy way to make a decision on if something is good or bad for you and to create a visualize picture of this. With working out at a gym if the distance from your house or work is over 10 miles is this a negative due to your schedule? If so it goes in the con list. With a mutual fund you don’t need to know as much about the individual stocks so if you are short on time this would be a positive. Do a pro and con list for each option that you are looking at, when done you can place them side by side to see who has the strongest positive side and which one has the positives that are most important to you.
Choose
After looking at all of your options make a decision that fits your life. Not your neighbor’s life or the financial guru on TV – but your life. Once you have made your choice jump in and start investing.
Don’t get distracted about the method of investing (or exercising), make a choice and start implementing! The sooner you start your program the better.
Andrea Travillian
http://www.takeasmartstep.com
Guiding you to Living Well Today and Retiring Rich. Check out the guide to mutual fund and stock differences (Free) – http://bit.ly/cWKHV7.
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