What game are you playing?
As you plan your financial future, care for yourselves and your families, think about what you will be satisfied with and what is important in your own game of life.
Brian Kennaugh is the CEO of Hunter Financial Planning and is a new contributor to Morningstar. Read his first article.
Motivational speaker and marketing consultant Simon Sinek has spoken about finite thinking versus infinite thinking in business. The same principles can apply to our personal finances.
Finite thinking involves fixed rules, agreed upon objectives, and is effectively playing the game to "win". Infinite thinking includes rules that are changeable and the objective is to keep the game in play.
The first step is to know the "life" game that you are in. You might need to start asking yourself questions like:
• What is important to me? Is it a big house with water views or is it memories with family? Is it both?
• Is it leaving a legacy? What is the legacy that I want to leave?
• Do I live a life that encompasses the things that are most important to me now?
• How do I maintain this life?
• Or what do I need to change to live a life full of the things that are important to me?
Yes, I know … these are some BIG questions, and you may not immediately have the answers. Nevertheless, it is time to get thinking because your answers may help to create a plan for your financial future.
Personally, I was challenged some years ago regarding certain financial goals of my own. I was asked to explain the value and importance behind those goals.
After a long pause in conversation and time spent reconsidering my goals, I decided to change my emphasis away from what financial wealth I could accumulate, to how much I could give in a certain period. It has been a fascinating journey so far.
We all know that warm fuzzy feeling you get from helping others. It may be through volunteering, providing emotional support, advice, donating to charity, or buying someone a gift that they wouldn't have bought themselves.
Studies have shown that "giving" in any form can improve your health by lowering blood pressure, increasing self-esteem, reducing depression, lowering stress levels, and providing greater happiness.
A generous person sees their "wealth" as infinite. They are prepared to give generously as they know they will always have enough and their "wealth" will continue. They don't see their generosity as diminishing their account balance.
Rather, they see it as an investment that may or may not provide a return. Individuals with a generous spirit are happier people, prone to less sickness, and live longer.
A friend once told me that money was made flat so that we could stack it up easier. As funny as this might be, the essence behind western society's obsession with accumulation has led to some ugly corporate disasters and poor behaviour, as "giving philosophies" are being directed by self-interest only. Most of society is playing a finite game. Playing to "win" the next thing.
I believe it was J. Paul Getty who when asked, "How much money does a man need?" his reply was "Just a little bit more."
It's interesting how we can be satisfied with our current material possessions, such as our house, investment property, cars and so on … Until we see someone else's assets that are just that "bit more" attractive than ours.
We can quickly become dissatisfied and can be caught up in the never-ending chase of "just a little bit more".
Now, I'm not advocating that you sell everything you have and give it all away. That would be foolish and certainly not a prudent investment. What I am suggesting is that having a well-defined and structured giving program may (quite literally) add a lot to your life.
Tony Robbins speaks regularly of the power of giving and benefits of giving. He explains the feelings of giving as being "alive and free" as he is not operating out of "scarcity or fear". Regardless, he speaks about how important it is to do what matters to you, which may mean giving, or it may not.
Don't aim to be better than your friends, your colleagues, or the guy down the street. Just be a better you. Play the game that's important to you.
Once you know the game you wish to play, it's up to you to change your environment and perspective. If you are constantly improving who you are and what you give, your game is infinite.
If you can find a way to add more value to more people's lives, than you will never have to worry about your wealth. You will be "wealthy" because you will know you are a giver, not a taker, which as it turns out, may be the best gift we can give ourselves.
My encouragement to us all as we plan our financial future, care for ourselves and our families, is to assess what we will be satisfied with and what is important in our own game of life. If you would like to have this conversation with our team at Hunter Financial please email [email protected].
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Brian Kennaugh is the CEO of Hunter Financial Planning, a financial planning company based in Belmont NSW. This is a financial news article to be used for non-commercial purposes and is not intended to provide financial advice of any kind. Opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice and may differ or be contrary to the opinions or recommendations of Morningstar as a result of using different assumptions and criteria.
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