# Give the milestone a purpose


Use this record with the worked examples first. For personal use, keep private financial details in your own secure records; the blank file does not need account numbers or credentials.

| Record field | Your observation |
|---|---|
| Definition of the $100,000 goal |  |
| Time horizon and access needs |  |
| Cash reserve and urgent obligations |  |
| Eligible account and current limits |  |
| Investment holdings and overlap |  |
| Target allocation |  |
| Affordable contribution |  |
| Fees and tax assumptions |  |
| Rebalance / review rule |  |
| Response to a setback |  |

### Read a balance that rose during a loss

Work through the numbers before reading the explanation. An account opens at $5,000, receives $100 at each of twelve month-ends and closes at $5,900. There are no withdrawals. What came from contributions, and what is the remaining investment change? Does the ending balance establish a positive investment return?

For a separate planning question, start at zero and contribute $500 at every month-end with no growth, losses, fees or taxes. How many contributions reach $100,000? What changes if six contributions are skipped and never replaced? Explain why that calculation cannot establish a market deadline.

### Reconcile first, then interpret

Deposits total $1,200. The account would contain $6,200 without investment change, so the closing $5,900 includes a $300 loss. The balance is $900 higher than at the start because deposits exceeded that loss. A percentage return still requires cash-flow timing and a defined measurement method; dividing by a convenient balance is insufficient.

At zero growth, $100,000 ÷ $500 = 200 monthly contributions, or sixteen years and eight months. Skipping six months and resuming at $500 shifts that simplified calendar to 206 months. Actual market results, costs, taxes and changed contributions can move the milestone in either direction; the calculation is a contribution benchmark.

The Chapter 6 figure ends at ten years, when the zero-growth path contains $60,000. It does not show a promised arrival at $100,000. Compare the negative and positive scenarios with that contribution-only line, then decide whether the planned amount and horizon fit the goal. If they do not, revise the plan instead of increasing the assumed return until the picture looks comfortable.