The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

9| O akville B eaver | T hursday,M ay 24,2018 insidehalton.com GROCERIES DELIVERED TOYOUR DOOR! WE'LL SHOP ANY STORE IN OAKVILLE! PLACEYOUR ORDER.WE DO THE SHOPPING. ITEMS ARRIVE. PAYMENT AT DOOR. ORDER ONLINE AT WWW.OAKVILLE.MRSGROCERY.COM OR CALL 289-813-7708 SAME DAY DELIVERY TOYOUR HOME OR OFFICE. www.MrsGrocery.com @MRSGROCERY @MRSGROCERY I have heard investors say they need to read more about financial matters in order to better manage their financial affairs. Not necessarily so, says re- search compiled by Mercer Canada, a large, well- known, pension consul- tant. According to their In- side Employees MindsT fi- nancial wellness survey, Mercer Canada found that financial literacy does notfinancial literacy does notf directly relate to financial wellness. Of the more than 1,500 Canadians surveyed, half said they were knowledge- able about financial mat- ters. However, half said they were stressed by them. Having half the popula- tion stressed by financial matters might seem sur- prisingly high. That can be explained by considering other findings in the re- search, which spans all ag- es, income levels and gen- der. Only three out of every 10 respondents felt they were financially positioned in the event of a financial shock. Financial shocks are sudden hits to your financ- es such as being laid off or having to pay large expens- es for car or home repairs. Many of these events are in- evitable, and having seven out of 10 not prepared should sound an alarm. Perhaps even more dis- couraging is just under four in 10 people have monthly loan payments that exceed their take-home pay. These results under- score why the Bank of Can- ada has repeatedly said one of the most significant risks we face is high household debt. Is household debt the house of cards that at some point will come tumbling down? The conclusion is Cana- dians are not confident about their finances and this lack of confidence is justified. So, what is the so- lution? Some employers offer fi- nancial information, but only four in 10 trust their employers. Seven out of 10 trust their financial advisers. That is not very reassuring because it means three in 10 do not trust them. I think we can all agree on one thing: Canadians should be encouraged to spend more time taking care of their financial plan- ning matters. Ultimately, each and ev- ery one of us is responsible for our own financial well-for our own financial well-f being. Decide what needs to be done and create an ac- tion plan. Is it time for you to get your financial affairs in or- der? - Peter Watson, of Peter Watson Investments, MBA,Watson Investments, MBA,W CFP®, RFP, CIM, FCSI,CFP®, RFP, CIM, FCSI,C offers a weekly financialoffers a weekly financialo planning column, "Dollars & Sense." He can be con- tacted through www.peter-tacted through www.peter-t watsoninvestments.com. OPINION Financial literacy doesn't necessarily mean financial wellness We should be encouraged to spend more time taking care of financial planning matters, writes Watson PETER WATSON Column