Wish Lists and the Purpose of Money
Everyone needs a wish list in life. A wish list is a list of everything and anything you could possibly want to make your life complete. A wish list is more than just a list of information though; in fact it is the equivalent of a compass point. When you make your wish list it becomes the “magnetic north” in the journey of life. Many have noted with curiosity the experience of making such a list when younger and then after finding it years later realizing they have actually accomplished many of the things they wrote down so long ago. That my friend, is the power of the wish list.
How do you go about making a wish list? Simple. You let yourself dream, you let your imagination roam and you decide in your mind that there are no boundaries to what you do, say, accomplish or have. Anything is possible. Everything is fair game. When you have established this frame of mind then get the pen and paper out and begin writing down anything and everything that comes to mind. You may want to do this over a period of weeks and even after you are finished it is advisable to go back to the list and add to it and revise it as life changes as well as your goals and values. So make the list now, but remember a wish list is always a work in progress.
A wish list should also be consulted when you are creating goals for yourself. In a nutshell each item on your wish list should have certain things that need to be accomplished and activities that need to be pursued in order for that goal to come to fruition. Thus, we would consider each of these underlying activities a task that needs to be scheduled and planned in your daily life.
Some of you
may be wondering what all of
this has to do with money.
The answer is EVERYTHING.
Money is not an end in itself.
Money is a means to an end and
that is something that everyone
needs to remind themselves of
from time to time. This point is
driven home in the story of a
financial advisor who set down
to work with a client of 85
years old to finalize his estate
plan. The man had built
what began as a small estate up
to the sizeable sum of 8 million
dollars. Unfortunately,
the man had also recently lost
his wife of 40 years.
It was during the discussion of
how the money was to be
dispersed that the man had the
sudden realization that the
money he had spent his entire
life stockpiling would never be
used for his or his wives
enjoyment or benefit and
therefore it was essentially
worthless.
He talked
about how he should have taken
more vacations with his wife and
how he should have enjoyed it
while he was able.
Needless to say both the man and
his financial advisor learned an
important lesson that day.
For one of them it was too late
to apply in life.
Don’t let this be your story. Enjoy your wealth and let it provide the road to a happier and more fulfilling life for both you and your family. Again, money is simply a medium of exchange. It is an important lesson that many realize too late.
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