According to a popular motivational saying, proper preparation prevents poor performance, which some rightly refer to as the 5Ps. In many areas of life and personal finance, this is of utmost importance.

There’s always a noticeable difference between someone who’s well prepared and anyone who hasn’t given it the time needed. For instance, anyone who’s been consistently saving five thousand naira per month since January is better positioned to put down a deposit to buy a quarter of a plot in the outskirts of Abuja than someone who has next to nothing in reserves.

Against this backdrop, yours truly is already thinking of next year with excitement. Of course, there’s still a whole lot to play for this year, as there’s even an entire quarter ahead in the pursuit of our financial goals. However, you mustn’t use that as an alibi to not be thinking of 2026.

As part of your preparation, you may want to start practicing how to live within your means and also how to leverage your time. Eyeing 2026 may mean watching out for business news or reading each edition of this newspaper from cover to cover every week.

Another groundwork you might want to consider is to even go over previous articles in this column. For instance, you may want to refresh your mind with the opening piece of this year, “Let’s put our finger on the reset button again.” If it’s another piece you fancy, go for it.

In order to start thinking ahead, a review of your financial goals for the first quarter of this year could be a smart move. You might come across stuff that you want more of or something that makes you shine your eyes. Improving your skills is another tool for eyeing next year.

Lastly, it seems Aliko Dangote, President of Dangote Industries, announced earlier this year that he wants to take his company public in 2026. Your monthly savings of at least five thousand naira can buy you a tiny stake of a couple of units of shares. If you’re eyeing a slice of that juicy cake, you’ll want to start your preparation.

A tale of two returns:
Two exciting messages landed in my inbox earlier this month. One was a dividend payment of just over three hundred naira, for an investment that yours truly made in a company in August.
vThe second was a coupon payment that was more than ten times bigger. Both made a ton of sense, and besides, I consider the alerts as a tale of two returns.