Tomorrow Will Arrive……Eventually. Be Ready.

Don’t do today what you can put off until tomorrow….That is the procrastinator’s creed.   Don’t put off to tomorrow what you can do today …….the creed of Strong Type A personalities. What about you and I…the average man or woman who is a Sometimes Type A, sometimes child, sometimes teenager?

No matter what, you KNOW that tomorrow is going to arrive, eventually.   Some things can be put off, but not avoided altogether.  Some things cannot be avoided or put off, no matter how much we try to not acknowlege them.  The harder we try, the harder they will hit us.  Taxes, health problems and our children becoming teenagers are the top three things we like to avoid but just cannot.  Those of us who are self employed, need to put aside money for our taxes.  it is hard…so very hard.  It is there, it would pay bills and maybe cover a much needed holiday away too.  So how do you not spend it?  It is calling your name.  But save it we must.  Or pay a much higher  price later on.

Health problems can often be eliminated when you go to the doctor early, when symptoms appear and for your annual check up.  As for teenagers, well the harder we fight our children’s independence, the harder the struggle will be.  We raise our children so that they will become adults, but so many parents want to skip that middle step….the years between 12 and 25.  Why 25 and not 18? I raised three children and at no time did a magical leprechaun come to my house on their birthdays and transform them literally overnight.  Age 18 has been deemed by bureaucracies as adulthood, but if I am the only one who never was visited by that leprechaun, I feel pretty hurt.   So I will assume I am not alone.  The teenage brain does not really develop good reason until it reaches age 25, and it truly only begins there.  That is not to say that some teens and young adults are not mature.  Some are far more responsible and mature than some twice their age.  These are the exception.  Some people NEVER grow up, never take responsibilities and accountability as a part of life. Some women will laugh now and start listing men who have not grown up, in their opinion.   To be fair, why do we expect anyone….man or woman…..to grow up if they are not taught how or if it is expected too young.  Yet that is what we want them to do….skip  that step of the process and wake up magically touched  on their eighteenth birthday……….and eliminating the 12 to 18, skipping right to the maturity of 25 years of age.

Back to the topic….if you will excuse my having gone off on a tangent.  Being ready for the tomorrow that will inevitably arrive.

I have already mentioned that you need to stay on top of your health issues.  A minor cyst today, when dealt with immediately, will always have been just a minor cyst.    Ignored, it may be a pre cancer or malignant growth.

Taxes are also something you need to stay on top of.  More than any single topic, it is likely that this will give you more heart palpitations than anything else.  Get to know a good accountant.  And find yourself a trustworthy and reliable financial planner.  Someone who can show you legitimate and accessible  tax shelters. Someone who understands tax implications for you and your family should something happen to you and who is equipped with the knowledge to ensure your secure future.  At this time of year, many programs are advertised which tout themselves as being your tax solution, as if one glove will fit all.  Leveraging, RRSPs, TFSAs, etc etc are on signs everywhere.  Are they all right for you?  Is life insurance an alternative to RRSPs (Canada) /  401K (USA) or the other way around?  Only when you talk to a qualified financial planner will you really know. Take  advantage of this time of year to start building a relationship with your financial planner. If you already have one, but are not sure he or she is doing all they can for you, talk to another one.  A meeting should not cost you anything except some time and it is time well spent, a solid investment in your tomorrow.  Be ready for tomorrow….and  be grateful that it arrives.  The alternative is deadly….

Contact me at myfuture@unleashtheknow.com for your financial future

Surviving today to living today. Making the change

I know from repeated personal experience, how problems can overwhelm you, making you see no further than surviving today.  We are frequently told to plan for the future.  We are bombarded with this message by financial experts, teachers, work supervisors and friends.  Plan , plan, plan….the every man’s version of location location location…the realtor’s mantra.  But how to move past today?

Let me say first of all that when the bills collectors are calling, the utilities are at risk of being shut off and you do not know how much longer you can keep that roof over your head, nothing more than today matters.  You know that eventually tomorrow will arrive and the bills and the problems will still be there.  It is too much to think about.  Even when you love being alive and are not suicidal, the momentary thought of the possibility of not seeing tomorrow, can be comforting.   So how do you move forward?  How do you find that path out of this situation?  Whether you are working or in school or on social assistance of some type due to no fault of your own, there is a solution.  Working with a certified life coach can help you.  Does it cost money?  Yes…money that I know you do not have.  Private arrangements can be made confidentially.

Why would I be willing to make arrangements based on your difficult situation, when I can easily spend my time making alot more money?  Because I have been there and I would have done anything to have someone help me.  I needed a shoulder…someone to lean on.  I have been blessed enough to have finally found a way to lean on myself instead but at times I ask myself how much easier the path would have been, how much less time it would have taken, if only I had had that someone years ago.

I have five spots open to help clients in this situation.  I can help anyone who is truly motivated and is willing to do the work required.  If you are in Canada or the USA, send me an email.  Give me a brief summary of your story.  I will take five clients…once those spots are filled, this opportunity will expire.  Please pass this message on if you know someone who would benefit from a Certified Life Coach.

unleashtheknow@outlook.com

please put surviving to living in the subject line.