If you have been working non-stop for a better part of 25 years (excluding the holidays), there will come a time when you wonder to yourself whether you should review your priorities.
Well, I am - reassessing my life directions. All those worldly things which I had dreamt about while I was in my 20s or even in my teens, I have achieved and obtained. What else is there, you might ask.
Time to look elsewhere to achieve other loftier aims. For example, wandering further afield, as they say. In other words, taking longer holiday breaks. Better still, be a master of your own professional career.
That's what I want anyway at this stage in my life. I don't want to wake up at 7.30am anymore and prepare myself for work. It's really not that difficult to go through the routine but I certainly would relish the idea of waking at a later hour, like 9.30am or 10am.
My dream career from now on is having a very profitable personal business. For example, SOHO (small office home office). It's nice to know that there's a career that has a self-generating income. A friend of mine shares my sentiments.
We are constantly bouncing ideas off each other. He throws up a few ideas. I throw back a few of my own. We had a lot of fun imagining and dreaming of the life of comfort and luxury that is just around the corner for the both of us.
I am sure there are a whole bunch of people out there who are operating in the same mode as the both of us. The good news is we are actively working on those little gems of thought. It all begins with a single thought, and then it germinates and finally, hopefully, it grows and blossoms.
When you are past middle-age, your priorities change. You no longer want to marry a Miss World or Miss Universe. You tend to be more down-to-earth. You don't believe in acquiring one billion dollars. A cool ten million will do! In other words, you are not so greedy anymore.
I guess in entertaining these thoughts, I count myself as one of the "normal ones". All of us would like to live our dreams and not just dream of dreams when we are in the sleep mode. Living a dream, to me, means having a beautiful home facing the sea with a wide expanse of fantastic scenery and owning a second home on top of some mountain (not too high) when nature is very much part of the ambience.
Money won't be an issue anymore. My family and I can do anything we like. We shall not take anything for granted. I will be around to frequently remind them of the realities of life. I would like to think that other members of the family would also act as anchors to the ground of humility for me.
It is easy to behave foolishly and maybe even haughtily when life gets a bit too easy. I have seen actual examples of the nouveu riche who unwittingly make fools of themselves by unconsciously adopting the bourgouise persona that make everyone else cringe.
Money does not make a person any different than what he was before the millions came. If you are an overnight millionaire, it just means you have got more money to spend. It doesn't mean you have suddenly become faster, stronger, tougher and kinder. In most instances, if you are lacking in character, you can become a major pain-in-the-neck overnight.
These are some of the things I think about on my journey to the first 10 million. Did I tell you that I am also slightly ambitious. Look, if you have made up your mind to become a tycoon, don't be shy or embarrassed about having 8 or 9 zeroes to your account. It's just numbers.
Some millionaire once said: "After the first million, the rest are just academic." That remark somehow seems quite profound to me.
But the bottom line is life is not all about money. In fact, it seldom is. We are constantly being deceived by the media that money makes the man. Not true. Hard work and meaningful experiences build character.
Those moguls, tycoons and billionaires who came up the hard way know this. So the wisest among them usually don't flaunt their wealth. They know that they might not wake up from their bed tomorrow morning and what does that say about their achievements when that happens.
Still, it's our aim to live life as best as we could. We should be deliriously happy every day of the rest of your lives. It is our sacred duty to be ecstatic and joyful, and it is also our responsibility to help others feel the same way, too.
Life is meant to be enjoyed to its maximum effect. Where will we all be if not enjoying ourselves as we make our way through this life, short or long is not really the issue.
Most of us mistakenly think that we can buy happiness. That means the more money we have, the greater our chances of being happy. We can be poor and still be happy. The difficulty is to convince the majority of the population about this. He who proclaims this truth will probably be laughed out of town.
Back to my objectives in life: I can now safely say, to minimum embarrassment to myself, that I am in a better position to add enhancements to my own life for the betterment of my family than at any other time in my life.
When a person has fewer emcumbrances, it is easier to perform certain deeds. And what are these "emcumbrances"? They are a roof over one's head; a reasonably healthy bank account; a well-being that is the envy of others, and a life that is generally free of minor worries.
Sounds quite reasonable, isn't it? Come to think of it, when one has all the above in generous portions, one can be considered relatively well off. But still I would like to have my own dreams fulfilled in their grandest fashion possible. When they have been achieved and attained in the scheduled times, I shall be most satisfied.
When I have arrived at my destination, you will be the first to know and I will probably write a treatise on the journey to my destination as well. Wouldn't that be great?
Duh! No peeking!
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