Financial Journey
(featured column)

Achieve Prosperity by Being Proactive
by Karen Kuebler

There are few statements I would make with absolute certainty, but one is that I’m sure none of us like to receive bad news. It never brightens our day or our mood, and depending on the severity of the news – it can really be upsetting. Out of self-preservation, I have learned there are many things I can do in my life to prevent bad things from happening.  More...

The more I can do to take proactive measures, the stronger I am to deal with, and handle situations that come my way that could not have been foreseen or avoided. Break this word down – ProACTive – and you will find the key to moving forward in life. We must take “action.”

Following are four essential areas where I’ve learned to focus and make part of my routine. If you incorporate these into your life on a regular basis, I am certain you will realize the payoffs, finding you are managing your life more effectively and your bank account is benefiting.

Proactive techniques to use on the job:  Since our jobs are usually our primary source of income, it is essential that we do all we can to preserve and protect our livelihood. In times where layoffs and downsizing occur much more frequently than any of us even want to discuss, this should be a vital part of your strategy. I’m not talking about working lots of extra hours and throwing your life out of balance, but I am referring to making yourself as indispensable as you possibly can to your employer. Offer to take on new assignments to learn different aspects of the business; look for opportunities to partner with coworkers on projects to increase both your knowledge and relationships with colleagues; take advantage of training courses offered by your employer to expand your learning or sign up for courses at your local college. When layoffs are necessary, employers will need to keep employees that are more diversified in the work they can do. 

Another key to success in your vocation is to know at all times where you stand with respect to your boss. How are your performance and results viewed by the company? Don’t wait until the occasional review, which happens annually if you’re lucky, to find out how your performance is judged. Schedule periodic status meetings with your manager and ask direct questions: How would you evaluate my performance at this point on the job? What do you perceive to be my strengths? What areas do you think I should focus on to strengthen my effectiveness? What things can I do in my current assignment that will provide more value to the company? To the extent that you can secure your future, improve your knowledge, and make yourself indispensable – you will definitely benefit directly from your efforts.

Take control of your financial situation - This includes short term, intermediate and long term planning:  Responsible and proactive planning includes looking at the ‘close-up’ as well as the ‘big picture’. Tracking regular expenditures is essential, but equally important is having a clear understanding of your net worth. This includes thorough knowledge of your debts, savings, and investments. In order to prosper financially, you need a road map and a method to track where you are at any given time. 

A short term plan would include goals for the coming year, such as annual spending objectives and a system for tracking regular income and expenditures. Short term goals would also include development of an emergency savings account and a strategy to begin debt elimination.

Intermediate and long term planning covers a longer time horizon. Savings goals become more targeted – such as setting aside for home, education, vacations, and retirement. It’s often not possible to pay off debt in the first year or two, but your intermediate planning should include elimination of consumer debt as quickly as possible. You will want to divert that money toward longer term savings and investments.

Make it your business to learn about different options offered to you for investing your savings. Even if a person elects to use a Financial Planner, it would be in his or her best interest to understand the variety of investment tools and strategies available. Read articles available online or in various financial magazines to increase your knowledge. Many of the terms used and methodologies described will sound foreign at first. With repetitive reading, you will find it becoming more familiar. If it sounds like work, remember that you are taking proactive measures toward your own prosperity.

Safeguard your health and take excellent care of yourself:  It won’t matter how wonderful your job is, or how fat your bank account is, if you aren’t healthy enough to enjoy them! There are so many proactive steps we can take to better our health, but the challenge is making them a high enough priority so that we actually do them. The number one reason most people will give when asked why they don’t exercise more is that they don’t have the time. I learned a secret about twelve years ago about exercise, and that is that I have to make the time. Other things will always get in the way if I let them. I schedule it into my daily calendar and protect that time carefully. 

Eating properly and nutritiously is something we all know we should do, but it requires constant vigilance on my part to ensure that I do it. When I eat healthier foods and keep my weight at an appropriate level, I feel much better and have tons more energy. I also know that I am less likely to suffer from long-term illnesses down the road. Once we reach the point of being diagnosed with a serious illness, it could be too late to make the necessary changes to enjoy a good quality of life. Taking proactive measures to guard our health is key to enjoying a prosperous life. This also includes getting adequate sleep. Sleep deprivation is very common in our country, and lack of sleep affects more than just how we feel the next day. Our body renews itself while we are sleeping.

Scheduling annual check-ups is an essential part of taking excellent care of our health. So many problems can be detected at an early stage and be corrected quickly, but if we let things go too long it might make all the difference in enjoying good health vs. experiencing a serious illness. Most of us don’t enjoy going to the doctor. But I’ve decided I don’t like the alternative if I let a problem go undiagnosed. I schedule an annual physical at the same time each year – some suggest scheduling it around your birthday in order to remember to do it, but I personally don’t want to celebrate my birthday that way!

Be proactive in the use of your time and manage it wisely:  Time is the one resource that we are all blessed with equally. Each day we are given a new account of 24 hours, and it is entirely up to us how we spend it. If we don’t spend it wisely, we can’t have a “do over.” That time is gone forever and we can’t bank it to use later. In some ways it is our most valuable resource, since once it is gone we can never replace it. 

The key to protecting and capitalizing on this priceless gift is to make sure that we are always tending to our highest priorities. It won’t help to spend time regretting the hours we may not have managed wisely. We can only look forward and focus on how we will spend our time in the future. I have found the best way to ensure I focus on my highest priorities is to keep a daily planner and list what I want to accomplish each day. Prioritizing the list is essential, otherwise I just end up with a ‘to do’ list and that doesn’t help me to focus on the most important things first.

Alan Lakein, author of How to Control Your Time and Your Life created the Lakein Question: What is the best use of my time right now? If you continually focus your attention on the answer to that question, you will find that you are effectively managing your life and capitalizing on the precious resource given to you one day at a time. 

Is it time to get out and take a brisk walk, or call the doctor to schedule an annual check-up? Maybe you need to spend a quality hour with one of your children, focused totally on his or her needs. Your body might be telling you that you need to take a nap and renew your energy. 

Our priorities in life are unique and individual. The key to living a prosperous life is to ensure that we are taking proactive measures, paying attention to our highest priorities. When the road to prosperity feels overwhelming, take it one baby step at a time – focus this minute on your highest priority and you will find yourself putting one foot in front of the other and making progress toward your goals!

*  *  *

Copyright © 2003 by Karen Kuebler

Want more money-saving tips?  Get a FREE subscription to our monthly Ezine!