Want Real Financial Change in 2020? Answer Kinder’s Famous 3 Questions.
Want Real Financial Change in 2020? Answer Kinder’s Famous 3 Questions.
You may have noticed in yourself or others that many goals can go unmet until the right motivation is present. Perhaps you’ve told yourself that you’ll get healthier, but it’s so easy to procrastinate. You say you’ll clean up your diet after (fill in the blank). You’ll start getting up to hit the gym before work next week. The will to change is there, but for most, it doesn’t happen until you get the right motivation. Maybe you see an unflattering picture of yourself. Or maybe even worse, you get a warning from your doctor that if you don’t change your ways, your long-term health is in danger. Often times, a realization like this can force you to change your behavior in an instant.
This is no different for your financial life. If you want to make better money choices, you need the right motivation. You have to know why you’re doing it. Once you’ve thought about what’s really important, it’s easier to direct your financial resources toward the things that matter most.
George Kinder
This fall, I the opportunity to spend two full days in an immersive workshop with George Kinder, who is widely regarded as the father of ‘Life Planning’. It was an exhausting two days as he challenged the 50 or so financial planners in the room in our own relationships with money and helped us learn how we can help our clients be more intentional with theirs.
George is well known for his ‘3 Questions’ which can be used as a tool to help us understand what we really want out of life. I’ve found them to be extremely powerful. If you actually take some time to be thoughtful and answer them truthfully, they will undoubtedly elicit some intense emotions. They can help you crystalize what’s most important, so you can be sure you’re using money on things that are really going to improve your life.
The ‘3 Questions’
Take a moment to think about your own answers to George’s 3 Questions:
1. Imagine that you are financially secure. You have enough money to take care of your needs, now and in the future. How would you live your life? Would you change anything?
2. You go to see your doctor who tells you that you only have 5-10 years left to live. The good news is you won’t feel sick. The bad news is you’ll have no notice of the moment of your death. What will you do in the time you have remaining to live? Will you change your life and how will you do it?
3. This time you visit your doctor and she shocks you with the news that you only have one day left to live. What feelings arise as you confront your very real mortality. What did you miss? Who did you not get to be? What did you not get to do?
These are heavy questions. I encourage you to read them again and give them some real thought. If you want an even more impactful experience, have your spouse answer them as well and compare responses. We’ve seen spouses of decades long relationships learn new things about their partners.
Once you’ve had some time to think about your answers, take a big picture look at where your financial resources are going.
If I looked at your finances and your answers to these questions, would I be able to see a connection?
If not, maybe it’s time to make some changes or to utilize the services of a financial planner that has dealt with these challenges many times over. A good financial planner will help make sure you’re using your money to work toward your best life.