Only when the markets take a dive do many of us learn just how vulnerable we are — and how exposed to uncertainty and distress we have allowed ourselves to become. We experience fear and panic for a few weeks or months, but then, when the sunny good times return once more, we soon forget the essential money lessons we have only recently learned.

Maybe things can be different this time around.  How different would our lives be if we did a little overdue financial housekeeping and reduced some of the insecurity and stress in our lives?

So even if your “daddy’s rich and your ma is good lookin” perhaps you can take a few days this summer and think about what you really value in life then set out a simple financial plan to systematically obtain those all-important goals.  Ah, now that is true Summertime! – Karin Mizgala

Karin Mizgala is a Vancouver-based fee-for-service financial planner with an MBA and a degree in psychology. She’s the President of LifeDesign Financial and co-founder of the Women’s Financial Learning Centre.