Financial Success is in Your Mind
When we think of the very word ’success ‘ most of us think Financial Success.
We define achievement as the ability to meet and surpass our needs, even leaving room for luxuries. With financial success we are able to live comfortably, acquire property, take our children if we have them-to good, expensive, schools. We are what we can buy. And we can buy when we are financially stable, either through slaving away at our designated places of work, through lucrative business enterprise, or when we are very very lucky - inheritance of property. This is the type of success that most people envision when we think about the word success.
Financial success can be defined differently at different times of our lives than others.
When we are young and just out of college, we regard financial success as our first big bonus for a job well done or even a year well run. We get older and our monetary expectations rise, we think broader, we want to buy a good car, pay mortgage on a house in a nice neighborhood, start putting money aside for our children’s college funds. If our earnings support our aspirations we consider ourselves again, financially successful.
Our careers progress and we need to fit in with our betters for us to feel worthwhile or at the very least - on track. At this time financial success is defined as being paid and paid well for good career performance - the promotion, the big, fat raise. At other times, it’s having the financial freedom to do what you want when you want - holiday in exotic places, invest and make a killing on the stock exchange, move to the suburbs.
Then we discover financial success comes with a price. A career that is no longer a passion, long hours, demanding career paths, few if any vacations and very little time to call your own.
The key to feeling financially successful is to first define what financial success means to you.
For every individual, the definition of financial success will be something different. Your personal definition of financial success will change with your life changes. Financial success will be different when you’re single, when you’re married, when you have kids and when your kids are grown and defining their own personal financial success.
For the average Joe, is Financial Freedom the same as Career Success?
Financial Freedom - This type of success is the one that we all look for. Ideally, that is in a perfect world this is doing something you love and making tons of money from it. Working an average amount of hours doing something you enjoy and find effortless, such as a hobby or passion, and making an excellent living at it is - financial freedom. Who wouldn’t want to be able to turn a hobby or passion into a good source of income?
But before we turn the page on that financial freedom also has another side. I define it as doing something you’re good at so well that you only need to spend a few hours a day making a living from it, allowing you the freedom to pursue other interests that provide the necessary gasoline to drive your dream or ambitions.
Career Success - The other side of the coin. The daily grind that pays or should pay well. As with all things given, there is a catch, for your career to be able to pay you very well, you probably don’t have much freedom with your time. Even if this was your dream job at one time, it is very likely this was only because of the money you would be making, and not because of any real interest or passion. Or , if you choose to differ, the drive and passion have been ground into dust by daily wear, tear and monotony
A good way to determine if your financial success is financial freedom or career success is to ask yourself this question – If you won the lottery tomorrow, would you still do what it is that you do? I’m not asking if you would keep your job, but would you, after the cash cow came in, continue with your chosen profession only this time as a hobby? Would you help out as a favor if your input was needed? Would you use your winnings to create your own business in the same field?
If you would be out of your office so fast you left tread marks, lottery ticket in one hand and passport in the other, you my friend, merely have a well-paying career. Even if you are financially successful, with all the trimmings you don’t have the financial freedom that we are all looking for.
Before you get older, before you run out of steam, before you’re too old to care - No, don’t quit your job! find out if you can pursue what it is that you love to do. Your job will then be only a tool to ease yourself into the career or business you are suited towards and if it makes money for you why then, Yes, you will have acquired Financial Success
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