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What do you value? 
What do you want your life to look like? 

Do you ever ask yourself these questions? 

The answers to these questions - if you take them to heart - can have a huge impact on the direction of your life and how you organize your finances. They can help you lead your life and finances with intentionality, and with a plan. And intentionality usually leads to personal and financial progress and growth, never mind the joy of living a life that feels purposeful to you. 

I'm a pretty big believer that if you are not moving forward, you are moving backward. With no awareness or foresight, it becomes really easy to live only for today. I agree it's important to be 'in the moment,' but the long-term downsides of not preparing can be huge. Aside from the personal impacts, financially, it can lead to:
- emotional overspending,
- not adequately saving for your future needs or goals,
- and not having access to cash when opportunities arise. 

These 3 things can be the difference between financial independence and freedom, or being a slave to banks and the government. 

On the other hand, knowing what you value, how you want to live, and what you want for your future, and writing them down will help you move toward them and will lead to more opportunities. 

Also, different financial tools are better suited for different lifestyles, goals, and values. When you know how you want to live your life and where you see yourself in the future, it becomes much easier to strategize how to get there and to use the proper financial tools to help you succeed. 

Here's an exercise for you:
Pretend you are 95 and looking back on the amazing fulfilled life you lived. What made it that way? How did you live? What values did you hold to? 

Write your thoughts down, and start planning how you can do that. 

What values are you intentionally directing your money toward? 
What is a dream that you can write down and turn into a goal? How can you intentionally start directing your energy and money toward it?