Dead Presidents on Paper

As a financial planner, by necessity, I engage in many conversations with my clients, and prospective clients, about money. The concept of money has an interesting effect on people. The power they attribute to it would make one think that the picture of a dead president on a piece of paper could create happiness and financial security.
Of course we know that’s ludicrous. It’s a silly assumption. But the fact is, people still live their entire lives as though it were true.
You see them:
• standing in a long line to purchase a lottery ticket
• or sitting for hours in front of a slot machine waiting for the big win
• or poring over the latest stock market reports to see if they made a gain or suffered loss
• or spending countless hours striving to further a career with no thought of personal health or personal relationships
• or funneling their savings into a retirement plan in the belief that that will create security for them in their so-called golden years
In each of these scenarios – and in countless others all across the country – people are chasing wildly, almost thoughtlessly, after money. It has become a prime focal point of their existence. At the end of that road in life, most come up disappointed, discouraged, and disillusioned. Why? Because money simply does not have that kind of power.
Money in and of itself has no intrinsic value. It is merely a tool with which to measure value. If you have something of value and I want to purchase that item from you, in our society, I give you money for it. (In America that would be dollars.) In centuries past I might have given you gold doubloons, a pretty shell, a belt of beaded wampum, or even salt. Money is a medium of exchange. To think of money in this way may require a paradigm shift from what you have heard all your life.
As a financial planner, I encourage people to make seeking after their life purpose as a main goal in life. This means finding out why you were put on this earth, what you do best, and what can result from you being the best you that you can be.
Building on that as the foundation, money can then have a greater impact on the things in life that are truly fulfilling. My premise is that money is only one aspect of the RichLife and should never be the ultimate goal.
Will you invest the years of your life chasing after that elusive dollar? Or will you invest the years of your life discovering, and then living out your true purpose?
Those who choose the latter wind up at the end of the journey fulfilled, happy, peaceful and content. The funny thing is that the people who are not attached to money are often the ones who have it present in their lives.
Never let it be said that you allowed the picture of a dead president on a piece of paper to rule and run your life. Change your mind set about money and you will change your life.