When The Life List came out, the timing was perfect for me. As a woman going through a time of transition, The Life List resonated. I was about to turn 55. I had lost my dad and my father-in-law. My kids had moved out. And all of this forced me to focus on what time I have left and to look at my life differently. To re-prioritise. I figure I have about 12,000 days left to live and I kept thinking – How do I redesign the professional life I have known for the last 30 years?
And so, I walked away from the daily grind of being a highly paid financial planning executive to live the life I really want.
Something Kate asks in the book – how do you reframe your goals? – kept coming back to me. I loved identifying my Go Big Goals and my Go Small Goals. But I got really excited about the Go Now Goals!. As financial planners, we are always projecting ahead 2-5 years. But I wanted to bring my focus into the now.
The first part of semi-retiring for me was to give myself permission to say: Actually, there’s nothing I need to hang onto. It’s OK to take the next 12 months to see what lands in my world. It’s OK to take the time to explore what I have been missing.
Next I looked at my non-negotiables – what do I really want for the next 12 months? And it’s simple – fun, travel, and community. The people piece has been critical for me. If I’m going to look at the next chapter of my life through a different lens, I need to surround myself with different people.
Financial Advisors go to a lot of development events. As a speaker myself, and media commentator and financial authority, I decided to do a deep dive into working in the events industry. I am on the Advisory Committee for the Inside Network and I had a conversation with them and they said – come on board!
And so, I have pivoted. I am travelling widely, meeting new people, and delivering incredibly amazing events across Australia and Asia. As Community Director, I curate content and invite the right people in the door.
I’m a planner. It’s important to get your foundations right. I have the financial foundations in place that have allowed me to make choices for the life I want to live, now. I’m also focused on my health and family and ensuring our home life is running beautifully and harmoniously. I have vitality and energy.
If you are doing what you love, you are in flow. Energy comes with that. I am living what I value most. It is a moment in time and I’m savouring it.
