Multi award-winning Chartered Financial Planner, Certified Coach, author of The Money Plan, and Sunday Mirror columnist
Your New Year’s Eve celebrations may seem a distant memory, and for many of us when we start a new year, we commit to some resolutions; goals that we’d like to accomplish in the following twelve months, things that are important to us, and will bring us happiness.
However, only a minority accomplish what they set out to achieve, why is this? In summary, it’s our focus. There are deeper reasons why we are not focusing on what we want, but the overarching cause why we don’t accomplish what we want in life is that we never actually make it a must, we leave it as a should.
This is not isolated to our resolutions at a new year; it can be extended to our life, we never decide how we want to live the rest of our lives. We’ve never been taught to take the time to decide what we want. Life can be busy and often we are like ships in the ocean, without a rudder, bobbing around and being directed by the wind.
We can’t control our environment; government policy, the cost of living, the Ukraine or Israel/Gaza/Iran crisis, but we can decide how we will react to these events and the meaning we will give them.
Our time on this planet is often far too short, if you’re in your 50s you probably have less than 35 more New Years to celebrate, a sobering thought.
Your past does not equal your future. Why not make this year great, a year to reflect back and say I am glad I did, rather than I wish I had.
You can do this by answering this question: “How do you want to live the rest of your life?” It’s a question I often ask my clients, and once I do, I shut up and allow them to really think what it is they want. For some, it’s the simple things in life, others have great ambitions. It’s not for me to decide what’s right for you, it’s your life to live on your terms, and I want to help you really live it.
Once you’ve answered the question, write your answer down in your diary, or smart phone notes and take some time to ensure this is what you really want, not what you think you should have.
For me, I often think I should grow my business and earn more money, but in reality, I love nothing more than helping others achieve financial freedom, and freedom from the worries of money, that’s what truly brings me fulfilment.
When you’re clear on what it is you want, write down the things you need to achieve in the next twelve months to move you closer towards your outcome. I believe that if you’re not growing as an individual, you’re not really living life, taking strides towards achieving your outcome will make you feel more confident, happier and fulfilled.
I work with clients who earn more than a million pounds a year in personal income, and those through my coaching, who may have no income, complete extremes of the economic scale. But what they both have in common is a nervous system that runs their decision making processes.
We are all looking to grow as individuals, make a difference in our own lives and the lives of other people.
We have less than twenty-six weeks until we’ll be welcoming in 2026, make this year count and decide how you want to live the rest of your life.
- For more money planning ideas please visit The Finance Geeks Podcast