Becoming financially free is a lofty goal for many of us. I know from my own experience that it can take a long time, and a ton of diligent effort and planning to even attempt to get on the path towards financial freedom. Even then, there are no guarantees, and it's not without risk. If there's one trait that all financially independent people share, it's persistence, and if there's one thing that all those without financial freedom share, it's a lack of communication.
Communication starts with being honest with yourself and asking yourself a few questions.
Communication starts with being honest with yourself and asking yourself a few questions.
- What do you want?
- Why do you want this/these?
- How and when do you plan to get there?
- What are you willing to sacrifice to achieve it?
- What's the best possible outcome?
- What's the worst possible outcome?
- Can you live with both?
This is just phase one. If you can't answer these questions for yourself, stop right now. You need to do some soul searching, read more material, and get a better understanding of who you are as a person, and how you envision yourself in the future.
The next step is the big one if you're in a serious relationship. You need to now be able to go through these things and have a potentially difficult conversation with your boyfriend, girlfriend, spouse, or anyone else that you share your finances with. This is where many people fall short. I've seen plenty of people who fully understand exactly what they want to achieve in life. They can answer the seven questions above with absolute certainty, and know exactly who they are and where they want to be. The issue arises when their spouse's answers don't line up. Maybe you see yourself starting a successful business, and know all of the ins and outs, but your wife just isn't ready for the risk. Or maybe you want to start a home-based business, but your husband isn't ready to share office space with you. Or maybe you see yourself as a savy investor who knows how to identify good value, and capitalize on it, but your wife just isn't interested in finances at all, and wants nothing to do with it.
The important thing is that you have the tough conversations and get to place of understanding where you can compromise and find common ground. You will never be able to set your own goals, and build your own legacy if you and your partner aren't on the same page. Don't let a lack of communication derail your hopes and dreams. Find a place that you can both dream of and be happy with, regardless of the outcome. Remember, you both need to be realistic and understand what the best and worst possible outcomes are.
Without absolute honesty with yourself, and with your significant other, your aspirations will become nothing more than dreams and you'll never reach your financial goals. Do yourself the service of understanding these things and communicating that with the people you care about. The more aligned you and your partner are, the more empowered you'll feel, and the more other people in your social circle will see you as you hope to one day become.
Without absolute honesty with yourself, and with your significant other, your aspirations will become nothing more than dreams and you'll never reach your financial goals. Do yourself the service of understanding these things and communicating that with the people you care about. The more aligned you and your partner are, the more empowered you'll feel, and the more other people in your social circle will see you as you hope to one day become.
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