Our Results in Life

There are all kinds of wealth, and the greatest fortunes in life—joy, health, love, family, experiences, friendships—will always outweigh the value of any material possessions we might acquire. But what we have accumulated over the years in the form of material assets can be a good indicator of past efforts and possible future results.

The results of our past efforts can be measured in several different ways. The first way to measure our results is by looking at what we have. Our homes, cars, bank accounts, investments, and all of our other tangible assets are a good measuring rod of our material progress.

Our assets reflect one aspect of our current value. To measure our value, we merely examine our assets. Now this is not to suggest that the only way to measure value is by a list of our material possessions.

If we currently have a significant accumulation of money and material possessions, we are probably well on our way toward achieving that dream known as financial independence.

By the same token, if our list of assets is rather inadequate despite our efforts over the last ten, twenty, or thirty years of effort, then this may be a good indicator that something needs to change. We may need to make some major changes in our current level of activity in order to increase our results. We may need to increase our skills or our knowledge or our awareness in order to take better advantage of life’s opportunities. Or we may need to make a few adjustments to our thinking about money and to our attitude about spending.

If we are not satisfied with what we have achieved at this point in our lives, then now is the time to fix the future. Unless we change how we are right now, what we have will always remain the same.

Everything we have acquired is a result of past efforts and past thoughts. We gather intelligence or we gather ignorance, and our future will produce rewards commensurate with what we have done with the past.