What am I supposed to be doing? Simple roadmap for the four stages of life

You probably have some ideas about what you would like your life to look like.  Maybe you have always dreamed of owning your own business.  Maybe you want to work for an international company and travel the world.  Maybe you want to be a singer songwriter in Nashville or a social worker who helps kids at risk in your own community.  Maybe you want a home and family as well.  Maybe you don’t.

Whatever your dreams, the world and the next 50 years of your life are stretching out ahead of you, just waiting for you.

Waiting for you to do what?

Make a move towards something.  But guess what?  Most people never move towards much of anything, much less a dream or goal for their life.  And life tends to just pick them up and move them towards…something else.

One of the keys to moving toward your dream life is to understand basics.  For instance, life after age 20 has four main stages in which most people achieve certain goals.  Or not.

20’s:

Education (i.e. college) completed

First job

Buy a car

Move into own place, usually apartment

Begin saving money for house, investing for future family needs and retirement: 401K, emergency fund (6 months salary), 20% house down payment.

No, it isn’t easy.  Here is a fabulous book I highly recommend you check out: 

http://www.wealthybarber.com/

Marriage

Babies

30’s:

Upward mobility in career

Parenting years

Continue saving and investing: emergency fund (6 months salary), college fund for kids, planned home repairs, retirement

40’s and 50’s:

Continued upward movement in career

Teen and college parenting years

Continue saving and investing

60’s, 70’s and 80’s and beyond:

Career usually has peaked

Second career

Continued investing, although moving money into less risky investments.

Planning for retirement

Begin accessing retirement investments

Retirement in late 60’s to early 70’s

Are these your goals too?

Maybe you can’t decide what you want.  Here’s a great tool called the Rocking Chair Test.

Imagine yourself much, much older.  The 70 year old version of you, sitting in a rocking chair and reflecting on your life.

Ask your 70 year old self if you would be happy with the life you had lived if….

There is your decision.  Start planning.

Planning is the key to a great life.

“I skate to where the puck is going, not where it has been.”

Hockey player Wayne Gretzy