Living without Regret

Do the words on this picture resonate? Ever feel like a hamster on a wheel? After all, the American game does look something like this:

1. Buy nice things to feel good and/or impress others so that they feel good about us.
2. Work like a dog in order to pay for the things that we "need" in order to impress/fit in with the rest of society.
3. Work hard and make a decent income (heck, people making $30,000/year are in the top 1% of the world in earnings) but all our earnings seem to evaporate by the end of each month. There's nothing left to invest in ourselves whether it be monetary retirement or physical retirement. Right now many of the folks that are at the retirement stage of life have no money (they spent it all throughout the their life and didn't save for the future). They are in pretty bad physical shape because they worked so hard (mostly at a sedentary job) and didn't spend portions of time taking care of their body via exercise or eating healthy.

The number one reason a person gives as to why they can't hire a trainer is finances.  Trust me, I am a HUGE believer in proper money management so I can relate to this but here's what I've also realized through some observation.  We can't afford upping our exercise/health budget but daily trips to Starbucks, eating out a handful of meals per week at restaurants, smart phones, new cars, new clothes, vacations and/or manicures/pedicures can get squeezed into the budget.  What do all of those things listed have in common? They are all instant gratification types of things.  They make us happy now. There is no delay in pleasure.

What I would urge you to do if you feel as though I might have been describing parts of your life is learn how to get OUT of the hamster wheel.  Start being weird! Start saying no, set boundaries, shoot for a goal and stay focused. Also realize we are the most marketed to population in the history of the world.  All day long we are marketed to in some way or another (I am kind of doing it right now:)

Two things that can help you get there. The first is taking control of your finances and the best person I know to do that is Mr. Ramsey. You can start by reading his book.

Secondly, we can start making exercise and healthy eating a part of your life FOR GOOD! Maybe that means this year you spend a little more on yourself because if you're reading this right now and realize that what you've done in the past hasn't worked it's time to change things up.  Maybe it means spending a little more and investing in a trainer, small group training program, a class, or a gym membership (that you are committed to using).  No matter how you look at it, we live in a time where the reality is a rat race. It takes a persistent effort to continually fight against the norm.

Want to know a little secret I use in figuring out how to spend my money and time? I thinking about what I would have wished I would have done when I'm 80 years old looking back on my life. I can guarantee when I'm 80 I will have wished I exercised regularly, ate healthy foods, and invested money for retirement.  Although I've got to be honest and finish the rest of this: I will also want to look back on a happy healthy life of serving others, letting loose every once in awhile, loving those around me with my whole heart and taking it all in...never taking anything for granted, being grateful and living with purpose and integrity.  This is what I call living without regret!