Do you know what you really want?

There are lots of difficult big questions in life, one of them seems relatively simple, but most of us find it hard to put into words precisely what we feel. What is it that you desire? What is it that you really want?

It’s tempting to list a number of things or experiences, perhaps a sense of wellbeing or contentment. Whatever you wish for, it is likely that it will alter over time. When you don’t have something you tend to want it, when you possess it, there’s something else. It’s almost as if we are programmed to remain restlessly preoccupied with something other than what we have. Some of us are better at coming to terms with this than others; some simply deny it happens.

Think back to when you were finishing school, as many are at the moment. You were probably looking forward to finally leaving the confines of your classroom, hoping for a good long summer holiday and the right grades to get you to your next step. If you went to University, graduating and finding a good job and somewhere to live, then saving for your first home, then wanting a mortgage and then not wanting a mortgage, worrying about your career steps, your loved ones and your retirement, then if you will maintain your health and will you need help.

There is a sense of never really arriving.

We may experience certain critical moments in life when our values are brought more into focus, stress tends to be the catalyst for this. Love, death, sickness, betrayal, loss or simply change. These are moments where our values become tested and often the noise of life falls away and exposes what is actually important to us.

At Solomon’s, our planning attempts to evoke responses from you about the life you want to live. There are no judgements, no wrong answers, but of course it isn’t always easy to verbalise what you want when asked. Most of us don’t have a bolt of lightning moment when we know, it tends to evolve over time, sometimes many years. I think that for some people, a sense of purpose is really important, or connection to their community, however that is defined. Whatever it is I imagine and hope that it produces a sense of joy and deep calmness, a sense of your unique character being in a state of nirvana.

When life feels precarious or endangered, a sense of anxiety naturally rises, so whilst a financial plan cannot control the external, we can at least provide a roadmap for your route to contentment. One of the most common notions behind financial planning is that it brings about a sense of ‘peace of mind’. It’s a phrase that I’ve heard regularly over the years, but it’s never really sat well on my tongue. Any and every good financial plan has an acknowledgement of uncertainty – we don’t know what the future holds. We can align our finances and actions with our values and prepare for the future, getting organised, disciplined, making better choices and decisions.

For me, the thing I want, other than deep human connections, is a sense of limited freedom – I will always have limitations, but within those it is the freedom to choose and the sense of empowerment that it brings.

How about you?