Rich people dream of the future. They prioritize setting goals and planning ahead. Meanwhile the poor and middle class often dwell on the past, which holds them back and prevents them from being happy and productive. The wealthy are financially successful because they spend more time thinking about their future than their past. They believe their circumstances are not a matter of chance, but a matter of choice. Their future is not something they wait for. It’s something they plan for. 🙂 .
We can’t turn back time or change the past, but we can all fight for a better future. Our past provides the foundation for our future, and our present defines what kind of future we want to build on that foundation. Every waking moment in the present is an opportunity for us to make better decisions that will help our future selves. Wallowing in regret or past mistakes will not help us in this respect. Whenever we become woeful we should try to acknowledge our emotional state, and then ultimately realize that our despairs or recollections about what happened in the past are simply ephemeral memories.
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The past can be useful, but only if we learn from it. If we failed a driving test, told an inappropriate joke, or didn’t get that promotion we wanted, we should absolutely think back and learn from our experiences, but more importantly strive to do better in the future. Instead of puzzling over what we could have done differently, we should instead be asking how can we do better next time. This shifts the focus from the past – a fleeting memory – to the future, where we’ll actually have an opportunity to do something about it.
In Pursuit of Dreams
All this talk about past and future is getting kind of tense. 😀 So let’s step back to look at dreams and ambitions for a moment; they’re the catalysts necessary to focus our energy and allow us to pursue success. Everyone has different dreams and desires. But we need to know what our own dreams are in order for them to come true. 😉 We need to have a clear goal or desire in mind, and adopt the right mindset of making a plan and committing to it. We all have the strength, patience, and passion to create our futures. But we must remember to persevere, show devotion to our goals, and don’t lose hope in pursuit of our dreams.
“Hope is a Waking Dream”
We have to keep hope alive even during times when our lives appear destitute. My net worth in 2008 was a negative number. A homeless panhandler had relatively more money than I did, lol. 🙂 But rather than contemplating about how poor I was and all the financial mistakes I’ve made, I was dreaming instead of a better future for myself. I know I can’t predict the future, but at least I can plan for it. Today in 2015 I’m about half way to my freedom 35 dream, and I’ll continue to look ahead and hope for the best. In the end it will be our hopes, not our worries, that will shape the path to a more prosperous future for us all! 😀
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Random Useless Fact:
Random Useless Fact:
Left handed people reach puberty 4 to 5 months later than right handers.
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I’m definitely a dreamer. It makes me so excited about what’s to come that I do more of what I want to do in my daily life.
My dreams are also what keeps me going on a day to day basis. Without something to look forward to the future has no meaning. 🙂
“You may say I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you will join us
And the world will be as one”
~John Lennon
This is why it’s so important to set goals for yourself. Not only does it help you prioritize your actions, it also provides insight into what actions yield the best results. If living in the past is such a bad thing to do, not learning from the past is equally as bad.
F2R30
Yes, it’s not only important to set goals, but to also track their progress and learn from them. 🙂
So True. Putting positive thoughts out into the universe tends to bring those thoughts into existence. This has always worked and it will continue to work.
Eric
Setting financial goal is important but we need other goal like keeping good contact with family, extended family, expand networking. That’s could be the breaking point, say you can make boat load of money, but can’t attend your family events years after year. One day you look back, you’ve missed the whole thing.
Other goal such as staying healthy. After ll, if you reach FI and you have all these chronic problems, and can’t enjoy a simple walk in the park, that could be a problem.
This is why I only 40 hour work week. (I’d make a lot more if I choose OT). But the longer I stay, I’ll just order out greasy food, stressed out, get fatter). The rest I do something I truly enjoy. Nobody would say id wish I’d work more on their death bed. I’ll say I’ve accomplish so and so. I hope mine is I reach FI at 35, I stay in the work force because I like my work, I like healing people, I like to teach, etc. :p
I agree Viv. 🙂 I choose not to OT either even though I know I could be making more money if I do. Having a work/life balance is more important. I heard somewhere before that the 4 important elements to a happy and healthy lifestyle are financial security, physical well-being, mental health, and a healthy social life. 🙂
Thanks Eric. Some people call it magical thinking, but I believe the Law of Attraction is very real. Positive energy attracts more of the same. Nobody wants to be hang out with a Debby downer lol.
Liquid,
This link might be something your interested in
http://www.bnn.ca/News/2015/1/26/Saskatchewan-eyes-tougher-rules-for-buying-farmland.aspx
Thanks for the article. It was an interesting read about the potential of increasing the restrictions on who can buy farmland. I think even if the gov’t blocks further purchases by the CPPIB other private Canadian companies will step up so the demand for land will still remain high. I’m not sure what this means for my farms yet but we’ll wait and see. The 2014 farmland price changes by Farm Credit Canada should be out later this year in the spring so I’m currently looking forward to that. 🙂
Cant live your life with shoulda coulda woulda. Just have to go all in with whatever you believe in.
Life is short, and the older we get, the more we feel it. We have to commit to the experience no matter what we choose to do with our precious time. 🙂