Don’t run out of later
Last night I was at the Ulster Hall in Belfast for Chris Williamson’s Modern Wisdom event.
Plenty of what he said resonated, but one quote in particular has stayed with me.
“I have led a toothless life, he thought. A toothless life. I have never bitten into anything. I was waiting. I was reserving myself for later on – and I have just noticed that my teeth have gone.”
Jean-Paul Sartre.
I thought about those words all the way home to Coleraine.
Because I see a version of this in my work every week.
It’s rarely people who have run out of money.
It’s people who have run out of later.
The business owner who’ll take a proper break once the company is sold.
The couple who’ll make that big trip once everything has settled down.
The retiree with more money than they’re ever likely to need, still spending as though the next stock market crash is due on Tuesday.
There’s always another reason to wait. Another milestone to reach. Another bit of security to build.
And before you know it, the years you were saving everything for have passed.
I’m a financial planner. I spend a lot of my working life encouraging people to save, invest and prepare for the future.
But there’s another side to that conversation that’s every bit as important.
Knowing when you’ve done enough.
Knowing when you can afford to loosen your grip.
And recognising that money is only useful if it helps you live the life you want.
Saving is a virtue.
Postponing your life indefinitely isn’t.
What are you keeping yourself in reserve for?
