In Search of Significance

After the 9-11 terrorist attack and with investment losses and continuous international unrest, we wonder what our futures will hold. How can we move ahead with wisdom? In today's fearful world, are we stuck with suffering decreasing portfolio values? Do we respond to our fears with fight and perhaps careless actions or with flight and lack of action?

In the past 20 years, financial goal setting has become an exercise without the passion necessary to carry us through adversity. Traditional financial planning has taught us to think in terms of typical goals such as funding college for children, beginning a business, buying a vacation home, being comfortable in our old age, and leaving something for the kids. We set our goals with assumptions about inflation and rate of return and the calculated amount to set aside. In 1981, we thought it was realistic to plan to retire at age 65. Everything was going fine. Then, in the late 90's, the returns grew so much that our account values became the primary focus. Many of us were drooling at the size of the numbers so we began expecting to retire earlier. By early 2000, the desire to retire at age 50 or 55 had become commonplace. We had grown to believe that our imagined goals were all but assured. Then, our ideas of a second home, a $400,000 motor home, and international travel began to fade as the market started its downturn in April 2000. Since then, many of our hopes for the future have been brought into serious question. Our overconfidence was replaced with fear. The ease with which we managed our financial affairs and our lives disappeared. Where do we go from here?

A group of financial planners has recognized the need to approach planning differently, dealing with the emotional issues of money rather than just the concrete hard numbers. Today's Financial Life Planners' work is to shift the focus from how our lives might have looked, to our inner passions which gave those dreams their original breath. This approach entails understanding more of what each goal is about for you. A poster at Well's Fargo Bank reads something like this: "Without a vision, its just money for money's sake." The key is to define what core values underlie your desire. These values may be expressed, but not in the way we previously imagined. If the flames have died out - nurture the coals. Without a vision, there is nothing to drive us forward in the face of crises we have experienced the past several years.

The financial life planner's role is to become engaged with you toward your vision.The more they are engaged, the more effective they can be in helping you make your vision come alive. Their work includes the churning of questions such as: Is your vision possible? Is your vision probable? What are the different ways your vision can manifest itself? How much might each possibility cost? What might be sacrificed along the way? What financial concepts, strategies, products would be useful? This is a collaborative project that develops over time through a trusting professional relationship.We need to question whether your earlier goals truly represent your heart's core values. Are your goals really what you want from life, or are your goals only a reflection of the way you were originally taught to communicate about financial planning goals?

Here's an interesting analogy. There is a Sufi story about a man named Nazrudin who entered an archery contest at the local fair. Like all the other contestants, he was given three shots to hit the target. Before he took his first shot, Nazrudin put on the kind of hat a soldier wears and stood very straight. Then he pulled the bow back and fired. The arrow completely missed the target, and the crowd laughed mightily at him. Nazrudin picked up his bow a second time and drew it back; only this time, he did not use as much strength. The arrow flew toward the target, but fell far short. Nazrudin had only one arrow left now. He simply turned again to the target, fired and it was a bull's eye! The crowd went wild and wanted to know how he had done it."I'll tell you," he said. "On the first shot, I was imaging I was a soldier and a terrible enemy was in front of me. Fear caused the arrow to fly high over the target. On my second shot, I was thinking like a man who had missed the first shot, and was so nervous he could not concentrate. He was weak with worry, and the shot was weak, too." "And what about the third shot? Who fired that arrow?" "Oh," said Nazrudin, "that was me!"

In response to fear, a third alternative beyond fight or flight might be to simply stand.Zen. Stand in the moment of unknowing. Do not aggressively move forward against future assaults (fight), nor passively be ready to fall back (flight).Rather, stand squarely, centered, and relaxed . . . as if you were in a Tai Chi stance. Like Carlos Castaneda's warrior (author of Don Juan), acutely attuned and aware of environmental surroundings and inner body sensation responses. Just stand. Like a skier atop a hill, knees bent and shoulders square, ready in anticipation for a balanced glide down the moguls.

As you stand, it will most probably become uncomfortable and you will be tempted to return to either the old tensions or shrinking sensations. Despite the discomfort becoming unbearable, continue to stand. If need be, call out to a higher power. As in the Alcoholics Anonymous Twelve-Step program, surrender to a higher power. Here we are in the place of peace and faith. Faith in economic cycle. This is you, the investor growing in understanding and wisdom. This third alternative is another, yet more comprehensive way of communicating the wisdom of investment advisors who urge you to hold. The point is to more deeply understand the money skills necessary for survival. Then one begins a path of wiser stewardship, greater generosity and a more meaningful (life and) legacy. These promises encourage us to move forward with a fresh vision and renewed vigor. Discovering the human side of money is a profound way to find your true vision and renew your vigor. Armed with this knowledge, you will have the direction for a meaningful journey.