Organization, prioritization, and ROI in the private life.
Project management. Simply put, in our professional careers, we have adopted processes which make our daily jobs easier and streamlined. It doesn't make sense to do y before x, or calculate the investment against ROI to determine profitability. We have many 5 dollar words that determine the best practices when it relates to business. Rarely tho do we ever relate these concepts to our personal lives. Im presupposing, maybe we should.
I make a decent living. Enough to live comfortably. I find myself living paycheck to paycheck and repeating "man, im broke, cant do that." far to often. My spending habits are sporadic. I spend money in direct relation to my day. I pay no attention to where it goes, only my daily whims.
I like smoking and drinking. I like going out for nice meals. I like exploring; buying technology; photography equipment... And I'm into the good stuff. Currently, Im wanting the new iPhone 3GS, 55" Samsung LCD 120mhz, Mac 15" loaded macbook pro, Canon 5D mk II, and oh so much more. Oh, then there's buying a house...
My point is... expensive habits... yet I have no rhythm. I have a kinda sort of idea as to what's coming down the pipeline but never a clear idea. Never any substantial savings, or saying no when I have the money in the account. "I gots it! Lets do it!" Never a let's check the spreadsheet and make sure our long term goals meet up with the short term objectives,
So this is where I find myself living beyond my means. So many people around the globe find themselves in the same situation. I think this is the loop that binds us. Most people are good, hardworking people that want to create and have pride in our lives and family... but with the cellphone = $120; electric = $100; rent = $1000; food = $150; Car ins = $130; Car payment = $420; Credit card payments = $300; student loans = $300, etc. Just the foundational items can be cumbersome.
One possible solution, and this is all theory. We view our finances as we would any other project to manage. Research, outlining, gathering a clear understanding of the full picture, then creating guidelines and allotting a budget, making adjustments where necessary over time. In fact, something tells me a financial advisor would be sharing the same basic concepts.
I find myself at 32. Thoughts of settling, buying a house, assets, portfolios. Grown up stuff. Retirement minded is the long term focus at this point.
So why am I not carrying the same level of organization that I apply to my space, and projects to my financials. Its an issue. Its a recession. Its time to trim and optimize. I need a system.
We need more rational, systemic procedures and view our lives as a project, not unlike a sims game.
