Time to review last quarter’s results

TUNDE OYEDOYIN  

Tunde Oyedoyin is a London-based personal finance coach and founder of Money Intelligence Coaching Academy, a specialist academy of personal finance. He can be reached as follows: +447846089587 (WhatsApp only); E-mail: tu5oyed@gmail.com

Time really flies, you know. Was it not like yesterday that we were all screaming and wishing each other ‘happy new year’ as 2023 gave way to this amazing Olympic year? The good news is that three quarters of it are already gone past.

But that’s just one side of the coin. The other very equally important bit is that those who are in the know keep track of their progress. That’s why in the very first piece of the year in January, yours truly urged everyone to: “Reset the button by setting this year’s financial goals.”

As it turns out, each year’s like a game of football. Imagine the match is already gone past the sixty eighth minute mark. There’ll surely be all sorts of things playing out in the minds of all the twenty players.

But anxiety, urgency, desperation and even excitement won’t be limited to the field. Those on the bench will be having their fair share too. Or don’t you think that the managers of both teams will surely keep track of the time, the scoreboard and of the field? Neither coach will pretend not to keep an eye on all three. That’s how to put each year in perspective and thus, keep track of things.

In fact, if there’s one aspect of your life you want to pretend not to check out on a quarterly basis, it shouldn’t be your personal finance. Therefore, to not review how the past three quarters have been will be shooting oneself in the foot.

By the way, what do companies worth their salt and are accountable have in common by this time of the year? Without letting anyone go through the agony of scratching their heads for an answer, the one thing they share in common is that they check out their results to see how they’ve performed. Be it a United Bank for Africa, UBA, or the lesser known player on the Nigerian Exchange, NGX, checking how they’ve performed against the goals they set for the year is natural.

That brings me again to the first piece of the year. That, coupled with the second piece, “Your financial goals must be SMART,” should be the backdrop with which you review your last quarter’s performance. Finally, don’t be afraid of what you’ll discover. Just go ahead and review how you fared between June and September.

Touched by a homeless gentleman 

Despite never having to touch the cash in one’s wallet for over a week at times, having it on you makes a tone of sense. Aside from serving as a ‘get me out of jail’ card, it may be handy for humanitarian purposes too.

While waiting for the Bus 55 to ferry me to Oxford Circus at shortly after 5am, on the last Wednesday of last month, a gentleman of about fifty approached me for help. He didn’t look like part of the usual suspects and he seemed even like a fellow Nigerian. So, I was all ears.

“I slept in the park last night,” he said, as he made his case. Long story short, he said he emigrated to the UK and things went South. Just before jumping on the bus, yours truly brought out his wallet and tucked £1.50 into his hand. He prayed and prayed.

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