Vince Lombardi once said “the man on top of the mountain did not fall there”. Just as it takes planning and effort to scale a mountain, it also takes effort to plan and maintain a spending plan, set financial goals, save for emergencies and retirement. All we do contributes to either the realization of our goals or leaves us short of reaching them. We all want to live our best lives, so get out the pen and paper or Excel spreadsheet and start. Step by step and soon we will be there.