Going on a Road Trip in a New Country Without a Map?
Sanjib Saha
18 April 2025
Many of us go through life without a clear vision of what a fulfilling life looks like. I’m not referring to a detailed 50-page document outlining our future, but rather, having a broad perspective on life that helps guide us. As we step into adulthood and get busy with careers and day-to-day activities, having a “50,000-foot view” of where we’re headed can be incredibly helpful.
Start with envisioning big life milestones. For a young worker starting out afresh, the milestones might include living independently for a while, committing to a relationship to start a family, buying a house, raising children and helping them become independent adults, gradually reducing work hours, and eventually retiring. Over time, what truly matters to us becomes clearer, and these milestones are refined with more accurate timelines and goals.
Why is this important? Because most life goals come with price tags—direct or indirect, obvious or hidden. Without considering these costs, our goals remain out of reach. To be clear, money isn’t the ultimate goal—it’s simply a tool that helps us achieve our goals. Having more money doesn’t necessarily lead to greater fulfillment, but lacking money can deprive us of many important things in life.
A life vision serves as a reminder of why we are earning, what we are saving for, how much is needed at a minimum, and what constitutes “enough.” Without this clarity, we are at risk of either saving too little and struggling later to meet our important goals, or saving mindlessly and missing out on enjoying life along the way. If we don’t know what we want our lives to look like, we may either spend excessively or save blindly, unsure of what’s actually enough.
Consider the hypothetical example of three individuals: Sarah, Tom, and Raj.
- Sarah loves living in the moment. She frequently dines out, takes spontaneous trips, and doesn’t worry much about money. But when she turns 35 and wants to buy a house, she realizes she hasn’t saved enough for a down payment. She now faces the difficult choice of either waiting years to catch up or settling for something less than ideal.
- Tom, on the other hand, is extremely cautious with his money. He’s been saving aggressively since his first job, skipping vacations, driving an old car, and living frugally. He keeps thinking, “Just a little more, and then I can relax.” But by the time he finally decides to enjoy life, he realizes he could have relaxed years ago and still been financially stable.
- Raj values being a provider. He works hard and earns well but spends it all to fulfill the desires of his wife and children. His high income creates the illusion that money can always be earned, so he spends freely on family and friends. However, as he gets older and faces the possibility of becoming financially dependent on his grown children, he begins to question his financial priorities.
None of them got it quite right. Sarah didn’t plan ahead, Tom forgot that money was meant to be spent at some point, and Raj neglected to take care of his own needs first.
The key to finding the right balance is knowing exactly what we’re saving for. We should adjust our spending based on where we are in life and channel our savings toward attaining those future milestones. This is what financial planners often refer to as “defining financial goals”—identifying and prioritizing the monetary needs for each important life goal, estimating timelines, attaching realistic price tags to those goals, and determining how to fund them.
If you lack a long-term “money vision,” you’re likely letting fate dictate what happens with the most important aspects of your life and the lives of your loved ones.
Thinking this way helps you save with a purpose instead of accumulating money without knowing when or how you’ll use it. Money isn’t just something to hoard—it’s meant to help you live the life you want. If you don’t take the time to reflect on what that life looks like, you may find yourself struggling later or missing out on things you could have enjoyed earlier. So, don’t just save or spend for the sake of it. Have a plan, adjust when necessary, and ensure that your money is working for you—not the other way around.
This article is part of the Big Mistakes series