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We all have goals in life that we want to achieve. Most of these goals are predictable – like children’s education, a home, vacations, comfortable retirement etc. We spend our waking hours, working for a living. We feel satisfied when we are able to provide the creature comforts to our family. However, our goals keep moving up, up & away. The shifting goal posts of life ensures that we are constantly on the treadmill, working some more to earn more.
This endless pursuit of material goals tires us out. Some of those goals make us stretch ourselves to the fullest and add stress & anxiety instead of a sense of purpose and fulfillment. That is why even many acknowledged high fliers are not happy with their lives, even though they are respected, are earning quite well and have more than taken care of all their family needs.
That is because the really important things in life have been relegated to the background while we sleepwalk through life without truly living our life. Hence, many actually feel an emptiness in life, a feeling of being chained & seriously lacking in vigour as we are not doing those things we truly cherish.
If we discover those things that would truly inspire us, empower our spirit, fill our hearts with happiness & help us experience a tremendous sense of freedom - how would it be?
Needless to say, it will be transformative. Having discovered those things that would transform our lives, who would want an ordinary life of plodding & drudgery? But is it possible to live such a life? What about the financial goals that we as a family have?
The life that we want for ourselves can be decided by us. That would include financial goals as well. One needs to ponder over the sort of life they would want to create for themselves. Based on this, a financial plan would be created to help one live a life that’s energising, elevating & blissful. This whole exercise is called Financial Life Planning.
This may look esoteric, idealistic & philosophical at first glance. Many have accepted that life is a zero-sum game – when we go after money one needs to be prepared for an uphill climb, filled with agonising work, onerous responsibilities & attendant stresses. Many even sacrifice their ideals at the altar of financial gains & material comforts. But, life need not be that way at all – unless we want it that way.
How Does Financial Life Planning Help?
In financial life planning, the first portion would be to deeply explore what is it that would count as an exciting life – a life well lived. The truly important goals are often things which are not necessarily about money. We have found that people want to better the quality of their relationships, spend more time with the family, learn an instrument, pursue hobbies, give back to the society/ environment, take care of their parents, get back in shape etc. Most of these things do not need money – at any rate not too much to pursue any of these. But pursuing these would significantly improve the quality of their lives for these are truly important to them.
Simultaneously, we would be working on the finances after incorporating the important, heartfelt goals and have a financial plan in place that would make it all work.
Is Life Planning for everyone?
This is a logical question which arises in the minds of most people. People assume that Life Planning is a luxury which only those who have sorted their finances & have provided well for the goals can indulge in. The fact is that many of the goals are default choices. We have not given thought about whether these are our real goals and even if they make sense. Even these goals keep changing as many of them are not well thought through goals, in the first place.
Many goals people have may not be the ones that would add value & meaning to their lives. Most times, they add to the stress, without adding any joy or fulfillment in their lives. That’s because many pursue the wrong goals and would be expending their time and energy on them, which would actually be taking them away from the life they want for themselves.
Hence, Life Planning is important to do, right at the start, for everyone – to clarify to themselves about what that they want to do in their lives. Only then the true goals will be evident and one will find vigour & vitality to create that fulfilling life, they always wanted. Their energies will then be well directed & the life will be truly worth living – every moment of it!