What is important to you?

If you’re around the same age as I am (40), then you remember a time before we were surrounded by technology. And you may remember the aim of 21st-century technology, too. It was to make life easier. Unfortunately, it often feels like the opposite has occurred.

As we struggle to keep up with gadgets that claim to make our lives better and more balanced, it often seems to me that we’ve lost sight of our larger goals, because we’re so focused on mundane routines. The latter, more often than not, takes precedence in our lives.

Perhaps it’s time to take a step back and ask: What do you actually want in life?

I’m not talking about the standard clichés like retiring at 65, traveling around the world, etc. What do you really want? That is the question. Do you want to organize the clutter when it comes to your finances or plan for your family’s well-being? Do you want to be stress-free and maintain a work-life balance, since in reality, there are some things money can’t buy?

You must be wondering why a wealth manager would begin his first blog entry by posing such an arbitrary question.

I truly believe that—much like the person who spends their whole life climbing the corporate ladder only to realize it’s leaning against the wrong building—most people spend way too much time trying to “manage” their lives and not enough time living it! They seldom have time to figure out what they really want in life, never mind how to plan for it.

Thomas A. Edison phrased this problem eloquently: “Being busy does not always mean real work. The object of all work is production or accomplishment and to either of these ends there must be forethought, system, planning, intelligence, and honest purpose, as well as perspiration. Seeming to do is not doing.”

If you haven’t thought about what your dream life looks like, maybe now is a good time to do so. Take an afternoon, evening, or even the entire weekend to give it some real thought. Not everything should be related to money, but likely a number of things will be. Once you’ve defined your dream life, you need to figure out how you’re going to achieve your goals, and just as importantly, how you’ll ensure you stay on track. Like diets, great plans are worthless unless you follow through. If it seems like an arduous job, that’s because it is!

I’ve designed my wealth management practice to specialize in helping busy and overwhelmed entrepreneurs and health care professionals do just that.

I take the time to clearly understand each client’s situation, and then find out what their goals are. Once I get to know you, I develop the most effective and efficient plan by using the right investments, financial planning methods and tax strategies.

I take pride in organizing my clients’ financial lives, since I understand the level of stress the 21st-century urban professional deals with every day. I truly free up their time and energy in order to give them peace of mind, as well as the time they need to pursue their passions and make lifelong memories with their family and friends. I do this because I understand that (as the legendary John Lennon said) life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans.