One of the things I got asked a lot by 20 years of bank customers was “Hey, how am I doing compared to other people like me?” It’s natural to want to compare ourselves to our peers, but it’s an exercise where you’ll always be dissatisfied if you look hard enough. Even worse, certain life events make a fair and balanced comparison impossible. For example, two people are the same age, have made a similar amount of money and even have the same number of kids. What if one of them has been through a divorce? What if one of them took time off to look after a sick parent? Stop looking for a measuring stick, because a good one doesn’t exist.
In its place, I took a stab at creating some milestones that I think are reasonable for anyone, regardless of career path and ambition. These are designed to be universal and for everyone, not goals for creating maximum wealth. For example, by age 20, I’d like to see $1,000 saved. Ideally, this is money earned and not birthday or holiday money. I get it, this amount won’t make anyone rich, but even a milestone as small as this one will start creating a financial identity built on some good habits. By age 30, I’d like to see all credit card debt paid off and a big chunk of any student loan debt paid off. I’d like a 40-year-old to have enough saved to support their household for a year without a job. I’d also like to see a living trust created, whether there’s been a little or a lot saved. By this point you've worked too hard for too long to not have a master instruction manual for your life. By 50, I’d like you to be able to pay off your mortgage. This one may seem ambitious, but a lot is possible with twenty-plus years of solid planning and execution. By age 60, I’d like you to be able to stop working, because life is short. The key phrase in this one is "be able to", because many people enjoy their work past 60, and why stop when you're on top of your game and likely with peak autonomy? If you're past 60, and work is even a little bit of a slog, I'd like you to be in the position to walk away from your career with no financial anxiety.
Whether these milestones work for you not, I can't recommend strongly enough that you write a few down for yourself. Revisit and revise as necessary, but having these goals written down is the only chance for them to feel real.
That’s all for today. Write me in the comments or send me an email if you take issue with any of these or if you’d just like to discuss. We’ll see you next time.
The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.