Stop reading this. In fact don’t read anything else. Reading these blog posts won’t give you financial motivation. You know what will? Going outside.
The Simple Things Will Provide True Financial Motivation:
Today is going to be a beautiful day outside. The sun will be out, the temperature will be right, and there will be a beautiful stillness just over the trees in the distance.
Just for a little while forget about your problems, forget about work, and forget about making more money. Dwelling on those things isn’t what’s going to motivate you. Dwell on them for too long and they will simply control you.
Instead, go outside and connect with the rest of the world. Laugh and have some fun. Take your kids to the park, go for a picnic, have a bbq, etc. Take your spouse out to get an ice cream, take your dog for a walk, and simply give someone you’ve never met before a nice smile. When was the last time you did any of those things?
Get off the computer. This is a huge mistake that I make all the time. As a blogger (and a personal finance one at that) sometimes this hobby runs rabid and consumes far too much of my attention. Though it’s okay to be productive and work on your side projects, you need to keep a balance. You can’t let your work become all there is to you. That would be dull. That would be a complete misunderstanding or your priorities. That would hurt the ones you love.
Why do you want to make more money? So you can no longer work someday? And when you no longer work, will you spend more time with the ones you love? Guess what – you could do that RIGHT NOW!
The Power of the Sun:
When the sun is out and inviting, it makes it hard not to believe that there isn’t anything you can’t accomplish. The sunlight can lift your mood and renew your sense of optimism. The blue skies are limitless with possibilities, and that allows for you ambitions to run high.
The act of financial planning is all in preparation of this moment and every other one that follows. We save our money, devise investment strategies, and plot at how long it will all last so that we can roll away the stone of worry from our shoulders.
Go outside and take it all in. Notice how there isn’t anything you can’t do? Do you like having time to spend with your loved ones? Do you like being able to explore and discover excitement with your new hobbies? That’s how your retirement will feel. And depending on what techniques you use to get there and what the world makes of them, you might fulfill your wish sooner than later.
Don’t Forget What Motivated You in the First Place:
Emphasis on financial freedom within our lives is a strong priority that should influence a great deal of our decisions. But the ultimate motivator will come from understanding just what it is that we truly saving for:
- The privilege of having our time back.
The privilege of being able to do whatever the hell we want without financial repercussion. That’s why I want you to spend the day with your loved ones and doing the things you want. Take it all in like gold and cherish it for what it is: The prize at the end of the race. The greatest of trophies.
Remind yourself every once in a while why you train for this marathon in the first place.
Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Thank you for painting such a pretty picture. I’m at work so I can’t really go outside right now, but as long as the weather holds up I plan on going for a walk this evening. I am also guilty of spending too much time at the computer, when I should be making more time to enjoy the simple things in life, nature and family included. Maybe there will be a visit to the beach in the near future, too…
You’re welcome! I really just wanted to write something that would capture what the perfect day felt like. Hopefully you can find time to go out and experience it.
You clearly don’t live here in Seattle. (:
“Why do you want to make more money? So you can no longer work someday? And when you no longer work, will you spend more time with the ones you love? Guess what – you could do that RIGHT NOW!”
I love this! Nice wake up call to what our lives are really supposed to be about.
Thanks Matt! Sometimes we do forget that our lives aren’t really about just making money. It’s what we do with the money, time, and any other resource we have that counts.
Definitely true that the outdoors make for great inspiration! Staying cooped up inside is depressing.
I love this! So true! God I could spend so much time in front of the computer being “productive,” but I often get so creatively inspired when I’m away from the computer…especially for me running is great for ides, and it gets the blood flowing. If you don’t live life, you aren’t going to have anything to write about!
Isn’t that ironic? The more time I spend in front of a computer screen writing about my life, the less life I have to live. This piece was just a huge reminder to get out there and actually make it happen.
Sitting in front of the computer all day has definitely gotten easier over the years. There are days at work I only leave my desk to use the bathroom and eat. I’ve found that when I leave to get some air at lunch I come back more refreshed and more productive. Although there aren’t any actual trees in the distance in Times Square 😉 so I’ll just have to imagine them.
Times Square? Yeah, you’ll have to fill in the blank with whatever peaceful thing in the distance you can find.
I have to force myself to leave work for lunch sometimes even if I don’t want to. Every time I do I not only work better, but my whole mental state is better too.
Going outside motivates me to work hard to make lots of money to afford air conditioning.
Great point about sunlight! It definitely improves your mood. If you are ever stuck with a problem, I find a walk outside does wonders!
A walk outside on a nice day is sometimes the best medicine anyone can recommend.
Love this! Being outdoors actually helps me be productive. The times I run in the morning or take a quiet walk with my wife, are times when many ideas come to my head.
Thanks Brian! After a long hard and stressful week at work, those quiet walks or runs are some of the best times that anyone can ask for.
I love the summer time. Gives you motivation to get financially free fast so you can enjoy more of the outdoors and spend less time in an office cube!
I can’t stand looking outside from the office window and thinking about all the leisure I’m missing out on. It just makes me want out even more!
Money is indeed essential in our daily living, but it doesn’t mean we have to forget how to take some fresh air outside and breath. Life is too short to forget how to enjoy.
This is one of the most difficult things I have to do. Staying inside because of my regular office job and then blogging at night is very difficult. We aren’t meant to stay inside all the time but I tell myself this is a temporary sacrifice I have to make in order to have time to do what I really want to do.
It is a sacrifice, and there will be benefits for doing so. I just have to remind myself every once in a while not to turn it into another full time job. I don’t want to occupy all my time working on it and sacrificing what little time I do have with my kids.
Yes, we do not have to stay in front of the computer all the time except of course when we have to work on something important or do some research. Taking a walk gives us time to relax and inspire us to become more productive. Once this happens, we can look forward to make more money.
I find I do much better work when I get up for a while and take a little break. A walk, a strum of the guitar, a talk with someone else … it’s like a much needed reset button.
So true! I spend soooooo much time on my computer, and I live in such a pretty place!
That’s right. I’m not even sure how you can blog when you live in paradise. 🙂
Just kidding. You can blog anywhere. But yes; we do have to be like parents and kick ourselves of the computer from time to time.
Good one. We don’t have to wait for someday. We can catch some fun today. The kids wont press the pause button on their growth while we pursue financial freedom.
The kids were an especially important part of this article. It’s okay to work on your finances, but don’t do so at the expense of passing up valuable time where you could be getting to know your children and being a big influence in their lives. What good will being rich be if all they remember was that Dad was always busy or never there?