The Man in the High Castle

The Man in the High Castle

I wonder if you have heard of or seen the Amazon series “The Man in the High Castle”. The story revolves around the suggestion that WWII had a very different outcome, with Hitler and the Japanese triumphant. The world that exists, which of course centres around north America, sees present day USA divided into two between the Reich and the Japanese empire, with a slither of a neutral zone.

It seems that the reality in which our main characters are found has the potential for some almost supernatural change through film, in which our “real” version of history is an escape from the present reality. I suppose rather like a nightmare in reverse.

What if?….

The second series has concluded and so far I have been reminded that the story is essentially asking the question “What if?” In this case it’s a horrendous present reality.  Of course, seeking a financial planning angle, this reminded me of the “what if?” scenarios that I create for clients. Financial planning is essentially taking current information and extrapolating it forwards into the future, we can consider the impact of a multitude of different possibilities. These range from the more obvious, such as paying off your mortgage earlier, or making allowance for care costs, to selling a business, receiving a lump sum or heaven forbid an enormous financial crash.

Take a look at the future

Cashflow modeling, used by financial planners like me, is not the future, it is a single version of the future. We take care to make clear that this is most definitely not “the future” but a version of it. You have the opportunity to take a look and alter the reality by either changing your plans or by changing your actions today.

Much like “The Man in the High Castle” we have the opportunity to alter the future by our actions in the present.  Naturally, you will need a sense of what future you wish to have. As the series suggests, there are some people that have some fairly terrifying versions of the future that few of us would count as anything by a nightmare. Of course, with the new US President due to take office tomorrow, who knows what the future may bring….

Here’s a trailer for the Amazon series.

Dominic Thomas
Solomons IFA

You can read more articles about Pensions, Wealth Management, Retirement, Investments, Financial Planning and Estate Planning on my blog which gets updated every week. If you would like to talk to me about your personal wealth planning and how we can make you stay wealthier for longer then please get in touch by calling 08000 736 273 or email info@solomonsifa.co.uk