By Brenda W Hargroves
My prior post – “What Is ‘The Right Life; For You? Part I”– concentrated on financial considerations. Today I would like to include spiritual reflections as well.
Determine your needs and wants at each life stage. Do you want to marry and raise a family? How many children would you like to have? Do you want to own a large house with all the furnishings and a luxury car parked outside? Do you plan to pay for your children’s college education? Must you wear the latest fashion trends?
Are you done with the above life decisions and headed towards retirement? If so, where do you want to live when you retire? Will you work part-time, or do you plan to take full advantage of your leisure time? Would you like to travel?
Years ago, a friend told me he views life as an uphill climb. He defines each need, want or responsibility as a rock you must carry up the hill of life. The more you have to support or maintain, the heavier your load. Therefore, make sure the rocks you choose to carry are worth the effort.
I’ve been single most of my life and do not have children. For the most part, I’ve only had myself to worry about. My needs are fairly simple. Therefore, my life load of rocks has been fairly light. Bearing a lighter load has allowed me to accomplish my personal goals. Your needs and goals will determine the weight of your load.
Eliminate Debt. There are no right or wrong answers to the above questions; however, obtaining much of what we want and need from life requires careful financial planning.
Your ultimate goal should be to become debt free. Borrow only when absolutely necessary. Meet payment schedules and repay the amount borrowed as soon as possible. Use credit cards to establish credit worthiness, but do not fall into the credit card trap (a whole different topic of discussion for a future date). Set a goal to own no more than two credit cards, one for everyday use and the other for emergencies. Ideally, you will reach the sweet spot where you can pay monthly charges in full, thus eliminating debt.
Also, whenever possible, borrow money from yourself. I loan myself money from liquid savings, set up a payment schedule and repay myself, as I would any other lending institution. I don’t charge myself interest. So, the interest I would have gained if the money had been left in the bank is offset by the interest I would have had to pay had I borrowed the money from another lending source.
Make financial contributions to worthy causes and find time for volunteer work. I support causes that serve youth because I firmly believe young people are our responsibility and our future. Determine what causes touch you and either contribute financial support or time to them. The amount of your cash or volunteer donation does not matter. It’s your effort that will make a difference.
Always remember that no matter what your situation, there is likely someone who is less fortunate. Helping to make another person’s plight a little easier enriches your life at the same time.
Conclusion - Mr. Hodowanes made an interesting point with regard to spiritual wealth. He said, “My own philosophy has always been that if you don’t truly own yourself, then you’re poor indeed.”
Mine is ‘the right life’ for me. What is ‘the right life’ for you?
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