To sleep, perchance to dream
All your dreams can come true
And your nightmares too
Waking or sleeping dreams may intrude
Often as a pleasant interlude
Dream while you can, work returns soon
The pandemic’s over, you can’t sleep until noon!
Does everyone tell you to establish goals? Well, they are right, except that goals are not the place to start.
Famed New York Yankee Yogi Berra said, “You have to know where you are going, otherwise you might end up someplace else.”
I agree, and I also believe you have to know WHY you are going. (Especially in these days of carbon sensitivity.) Dreams, Motivations, and Vision—DMVs are the place to start. No, not that DMV!
What are your Dreams? What are your Motivations? What is your Vision? These are what can drive you. Goals can be singularly unexciting if they do not fulfill your DMVs.
Imagine walking out the door, getting in the car, and starting down the road to . . where? You would not do that. You would not even leave the house unless you had a destination in mind, even if it was a stroll around the neighborhood. But the destination is not the reason. The destination is a goal on the way to the reason you left the house in the first place.
The reason (Dream, Motivation, or Vision) is what you need to have. It may be as simple as wanting to make sandwiches for your child’s lunch tomorrow but are out of bread and Nutella.® You hop in the car or stroll down the street to the local market, purchase the bread and Nutella (and a bottle of Chardonnay for your trouble), return home, and make the sandwiches, while you sip a glass.
Your motivation could go farther into the health of the child, gratitude from the child, the warm feeling you get because you did something for someone, even if it was expected. You get the point. The end to which the means lead.
These are steps to realizing your DMV, whatever it happens to be at the time.
I know it is a little overreaching to call making a lunch for your child a DMV but there are many who wish they could do just that. The simple act of packing a school lunch can be filled with other remembrances, thoughts, and dreams for your child. I had the opportunity to be a single father for a couple of years and I enjoyed making my son’s lunch.
“Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.” —Robert Breault
Of course, that assumes your kids are in school. Not last year here in Alexandria due to the pandemic. Think how much easier it is to send kids to school than entertaining them and feeding them all day!
So, back to your DMV. Everyone should have a retirement DMV. It may be doing the same work fewer days of the week, moving on to what’s next. It may be travel. Whatever, it is important to get it into at least a soft focus, like a glamour shot.
Start with the dream. Use your imagination. Do not be hemmed in by reality. What is the perfect retirement?
Sitting on the porch watching “those poor shlubs who still work” drive by?
Sailing the Caribbean and grilling freshly caught grouper at the stern?
Touring the U.S. of A. in a 40-foot diesel pusher luxury RV?
Whatever it is, it’s a start. Now think about your motivations. What drives you to achieve this dream? Where is the enthusiasm?
Now refine the dream to a vision. A sharply focused semi-reality of your retirement. If you are part of a couple this is a two-person exercise!
(I once dreamed of sailing the world. One week with my wife on a catamaran and I learned I would be sailing solo!)
Now that you have a firm vision and motivation you can set goals, milestones, and targets. How much will it cost? How long will it take? What are the roadblocks? Drop back to the “Dream” occasionally to validate your efforts.
I can help you formulate your DMV and make any adjustments to your investments.
Give me a call!
Adron Krekeler
703-740-4671
The Mamas and the Papas
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajwnmkEqYpo
Securities offered through LPL Financial, Member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advice offered through Private Advisor Group (PAG), a registered investment advisor. PAG and Thrive Wealth Advisors are separate entities from LPL Financial.