reflection: a thought occurring in consideration or meditation.
I’m not sure about you, sometimes I catch myself reflecting. Not really on purpose, but a past memory will come when triggered by a certain outside circumstance. I think about that memory and wonder, “How did I get from there to here? Is this what I envisioned for my life?”
Some portions yes…other portions…not so much. I’m definitely proud of many of my accomplishments, but of course you know that we are our own worst critics. I don’t really see that as a bad attribute…it’s what pushes us to do and be more. But there are some aspects of my life that I wish I would have handled differently.
I’ve talked about this before, but one of the main do-overs I’d like to have is financial. There are so many mistakes I made and time I wasted early on in my adult life. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t look back with regret because I know that we all live and learn. I actually chuckle because I see how far I’ve come and how my mentality has changed over the last few years.
Life a process of growing and gaining wisdom, but my concern is for those that never change. I don’t have a definitive reason for why some never change. Could it be that they don’t take precious time to sit back and think about their lives? Living from day to day with no purpose or plan.
If you want to find out where you’re going, you have to think about where you’ve been.
I absolutely love this statement. I’m not sure where I heard it, but it’s true in so many ways. Thinking about where you’ve been keeps you from making the same mistakes over and over again.
I have a few questions and comments that maybe helpful to you during your own reflecting process. Now, since our conversation is money here, I’ll keep these questions mainly financial, but feel free to create your own. Whether it be financial or with your general life. I’m definitely going to create my own life and family questions. Let’s start…
1. Do I have more to learn?
I think so. No matter how much you know, there is always more to learn. It’s never to late and you’re never too young or old. And there are teachers readily available. In high school, I learned about The LBD System (Learn By Doing). You’re taught particular lessons by your own Experience, which is definitely a great teacher. Don’t your bank accounts always give you feedback? Are you listening? The other teacher is Self-Education. Be it reading books, taking courses or listening to the advice of the financial gurus, turn over a new leaf and expand your knowledge.
2. Am I satisfied with my financial status right now?
Take a look in your financial mirror. How are you really doing? Could you be doing better? Is your current system working? If your status is in line with how you’ve envisioned your life to be, that’s great. If not, maybe it’s time to make a change.
3. What are my financial priorities?
What are you spending your money on? Not sure? One way to find out would be to take a look back at your bank and/or credit card statements. What do you see? What if you can’t tell because you mostly use cash? Then it’s difficult to track the past, but get a notebook and start writing down every dollar you spend and what you spend it on. These methods will give you a great view of your true priorities. Do you like what you see?
4. Am I paying attention to the details?
This question in sort of in line with #3. Waking up and choosing what we value and where we spend our money consciously.
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So, now it’s up to you. As you think about these questions, start and create your own plan. What can you learn? When will you start? Write it down and put it up in your mirror. You’re going to be amazed at how your life will be different when you reflect again.
What are your answers? Or have you created your own questions?
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Image by the consumerist
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