There is a proverb which says, "If you want your dreams to come true, don't sleep..." In reality most of us dream big and then go to sleep. We dream of creating wealth, we dream of luxuries in life we want lots of riches but unfortunately we do not stay awake to plan for those dreams and make them reality - we just daydream about them. There is difference between dreaming and daydreaming.
Someone who dreams has desires, aspirations, ambitions etc. On the other hand a daydreamer only builds castles in the air.
First step to realize any dream is to crystallize it. It is not good enough to say I want luxury car. It is important to be specific - I need luxury car worth Rs 10 lakh (Rs 1 million) after 6 years. Similarly, do not have it in the 'back of your mind' to save money for your son's marriage. List it down. Clearly state how much funds you wish to spend on your son's marriage.
Also note down approximately after how many years he is likely to get married. In case of marriage it is difficult to gauge exact age when marriage will take place but we can always have a ballpark number of years after which marriage will take place.
Having crystallized dreams next step is to create reserve for those other events that can upset our plans to reach those dreams. Events like job loss, temporary migration due to natural catastrophe etc.
Suppose if we have not made provision for these events and if they occur then they will deplete funds, which has been created for our dreams. Job loss, temporary migration etc. are events for which no formal insurance is available. Therefore set aside contingency reserve.
After creating contingency reserve, we should evaluate our existing insurance. First verify whether we have sufficient health insurance because if we have ignored health insurance for family while saving for our long-term goal and suddenly someone from the family falls ill, we will erode our savings, which was initially being set for our dreams.
After obtaining sufficient health insurance we should also focus on disability and life insurance. Lastly, protect our property - our house, car, jewelry etc. by buying relevant insurance.
After we have ensured that there are sufficient provisions to withstand perils that may cross us, while we are moving ahead in our journey to reach our dreams, we should move to savings and investing.
Do you know the biggest hurdle, which stops us from saving sufficient amount for our dreams? "OURSELVES." Our habits of procrastinating and spending are the biggest barricades in making us reach our goals.
Sooner we start walking on our path to reach dream destination, by regularly saving and investing, faster we will reach. We should not procrastinate. Also stay focused on to our dreams. If we loose focus, we will start utilizing our hard earned money into other unnecessary expenses and not realize our dreams.
Don't just dream about future, plan for it. Remember famous saying "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail."
Gaurav Mashruwala is a Certified Financial Planner. He may be reached at gmashruwala@gmail.com
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