Posted: 31 May 2008 05:26 AM CDT
My weekends are nowadays tied up with helping my wife take care of my daughter who is all of 3 months old. She is a beautiful baby and I feel blessed to have her in my life. Just as I am grateful for the presence of the next generation for Panzer, I realise that I can leave her a financial legacy because all that my spouse and I have as at right now is all hers. Continue reading
Posted: 16 May 2008 07:41 PM CDT
Flickr! photo by Panzergrenadier
Panzer’s weekends
Weekends are now spent helping my spouse take care of my baby daughter. She is an exacting mini-boss but is priceless to me. My daughter is a huge responsibility, financial investment as well as the carrier of the hopes and dreams of her parents for the future. In short, she is a life that money cannot buy.
I am thankful for her presence in my life because I am not getting any younger and I realised I am truly blessed by her coming into my life.
Your motivation in life and in financial freedom
In your search for the motivating factor in financial freedom, there can be many things or persons who are the models for your own life. That which motivates me may be very different from that which motivates you.
In the early mornings, when I carry my daughter and pacify her, I smell her hair and the distinctive baby smell permeates and connects with something deep within my soul. It reinforces the bond between papa and baby. How much does the scent of my daughter cost? A lot in terms of actual dollars and cents spent on her so far… But ultimately, priceless as she is my reason for living the life towards financial freedom so that I can spend MORE time with her.
Be well and prosper.
Posted: 03 May 2008 03:26 AM CDT
Recently, I have been under more stress than normal surprisingly not at work but at home due to my daughter coming into my and my spouse’s lives. This has made the difference. There is now a very human dimension to the financial decisions that come into my journey towards financially freedom.
As I was drafting out some of the key components of my will, I realised that my daughter will inherit a significant amount of assets should her old man kick the bucket one day. Now that she is in my life, I am still afraid of dying but not so much because at least I know what I have worked so hard to achieve can be bequeathed to her to some extent.
My daughter’s arrival means that financial freedom takes on a different dimension. Her needs, especially future needs in education and where she is to be brought up is now more important than my spouse and mine’s wishes. I realise that what some people talk about financial freedom is true, i.e. once you have children, it becomes more difficult to retire early and to retire young.
I guess one advantage of achieving some small measure of financial freedom, at least from the perspective of housing debt is that I am in a better position to offer my daughter the better things in life, e.g. pampers new born at $16.20 a pack of 36 without breaking my bank account. Also her formula costs more than stuff I drink which is the cheap cafe21 coffee that accompanies my simple rolled oats breakfast most working days.
What is the point of this post on a weekend? The point is that life is unpredictable and whilst we can plan and plan for financial freedom, there is this degree of unpredictability that will turn the plans of mice and men awry. I have learnt to enjoy the ride more and to reflect more about the path we take.
Will there be mistakes and mis-steps in this journey towards financial freedom! Of course, there will be. We are not machines programmed to function without errors or omissions. On the contrary, mistakes (unless catastrophic) are the ways that human beings learn. I learn everyday to become less concerned about myself and more concerned about my daughter. To be honest, some days her crying drives me insane… But, in 20 years time, all this will be worth it.
Be well and prosper.
Posted: 19 Apr 2008 05:33 AM CDT
Flickr photo by Rick Harris.
Calculate your net worth this weekend
Your net worth is a critical piece of information to track on your journey towards financial freedom. To know how far you have travelled on this journey, you need to know how you have fared in the key indicator that charts your performance towards financial freedom. Net worth is not the only thing important in financial freedom as by itself being financially free as a end does not satisfy. What satisfies is how your time and life is freed to pursue other areas that give you better satisfaction whilst not having to worry about finances and earning a living. Continue reading
Flickr Photo by Panzergrenadier.
What is financial freedom?
A picture sometimes paints a thousand words. Financial freedom means different things to difference people. Perhaps one way to share what Panzer thinks are the key ideas behind financial freedom is this bubbl.us bubble-map.
The key elements are living within your means, savings and investing and growing your means. I am sure many of you are able to think and draw out your own Bubbl.us map of what financial freedom is to you.
Spend some time this weekend thinking about financial freedom
You want to enjoy the fruits of your labour. The weekend is here for you to spend quality time with yourself, your loved ones and family and friends. Whilst you are out there relaxing whether at home or outside, consider that the journey towards financial freedom is driven by your own desires. Your destination is for you to design, to develop and to dream.
What will your dreams be?
Walt Disney shares with us,
If you can dream it, you can do it…
Be well and prosper.