(The “never give up” photograph is courtesy of Abhishek Jayesh Seth.)
We often read about all of the things we should be doing, such as exercising, following a well-balanced diet, reading, meditating, and so on. But what about all those things we shouldn’t be doing? Below you’ll find five things that I propose you shouldn’t do.
Don’t Go Into Bad Debt
Good debt is when you make an investment in something that will increase in value, such as a student loan or a business loan. A student loan is good debt because education increases your earning potential. A business loan is also good debt because, if managed properly, your business should produce revenue and eventually function at a profit. Robert Kiyosaki, author of the best seller “Rich Dad/Poor Dad”, argues that taking out a loan to buy real estate is also good debt since the property is likely to go up in value.
Bad debt is when you borrow money for consumption; that is, for spending on things like cars, clothing, vacations, and so on, which are all things that decrease in value and eventually become financially worthless. When it comes to consumption, if you don’t have the money–unless it’s an emergency–don’t spend it. High interest costs on unpaid balances accumulate rapidly. Einstein once said that “the most powerful force in the universe is compound interest.” If you have consumer debt, that powerful force is working against you.
Don’t Put All of Your Eggs in the Same Basket
One of the most important lessons that is taught in any financial planning seminar is to diversify your risk. This means that you should distribute your investments in order to average the risk of loss. This lesson applies not only to financial investments, but to life in general. Think of your life as being held up by several pillars. These can be: a career you enjoy; a second and third source of income; your health; a loving relationship; strong family ties; hobbies you enjoy; community involvement; and so on. If any of these pillars should fall, say, you lose your job or are having serious problems with your spouse, you still have the other pillars in your life holding you up. On the other hand, what happens if you’re balancing yourself on one pillar and that pillar should fall?
Don’t Give Away Your Power
You give away your power when you allow others to make you feel inferior, when you blame outside circumstances, and when you let other people make decisions for you. Imagine that every day you’re given a certain amount of coins to invest as you see fit. These coins represent your time, your energy, your attention, and your focus.
If you allow someone to dissuade you from pursuing your goals because they convince you that you’re not good enough, or smart enough, or have the right education, you just handed a few of your coins over to that person. If you blame your boss for the fact that you don’t have enough money to buy a new car because she won’t give you a promotion, you just handed some of your coins over to your boss. It would be a wiser decision to invest your coins in pursuing your goals in spite of naysayers, and in searching for a way to create an additional source of income so that you’re able to buy that new car whether you get the promotion or not.
Don’t Put Your Life on Hold
Although I would encourage you to set goals and earnestly apply yourself to reaching those goals, it’s important to remember that there is much more to life than reaching important milestones; you have to enjoy the ride instead of thinking only of the destination. Don’t strive so hard for that promotion that you don’t take time to travel, to play with your children during the weekend, and to pursue leisure activities. Simplify your life so that you can take a sabbatical and spend a year in taking that art class at the Sorbonne. The only time you have is now, so make the most of it.
Don’t Give Up on Your Dreams
At a speech given at Harrow School in 1941, Winston Churchill has been quoted as advising the students: “Never give in — never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.” As far as never giving up on following your dreams is concerned, this quote says it a lot better than I could, so let’s leave it at that.
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