by Dr David Phelps
“I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.”
– The Five Regrets of the Dying by Bronnie Ware.
Too many go through life avoiding the reality that they are living a life designed by others. I don’t want this to be you.
Fulfilled or unfulfilled dreams lie in your hands. It’s the choices you made or didn’t make that have led you here.
This is reality. Once you face it, you can make decisions from now on that advance you closer to the life you desire.
There is No Mystical “Someday”
Putting decisions off and just hoping for a better future will not create the life you desire. Most people have the word “Someday” in mind.
“Someday, I’ll stop working so much. Someday, I’ll spend more time with my kids. Someday, I’ll focus on my relationships. Someday, I’ll start to enjoy life. Someday, I’ll retire.”
Without a blueprint, a plan in place “someday” will never come because it’s wishful thinking. You have to define the life you want and then reverse engineer a blueprint to get there.
That plan starts with where you are today. If you don’t have the life you want now, what is the gap? What has to happen in between to get to your desired destination?
Without a guide, the gap can be a dangerous wilderness of failure and distraction. A leader can show you exactly where to go. A guide can help you regain the vision and dreams you and your spouse had for your family, many years ago.
Hard Work Doesn’t Guarantee Success
You are hard-working and successful by society’s standards, and that's great. But are you successful by your own definition? Are you successful where it counts? The quickest way to find this out is by achieving society’s standard of success. Once there, do you really feel like you have the life you want?
Are you comparing yourself to everybody else but not actually looking at your dreams? Everybody pays a price for the philosophy that they have, and that philosophy is often ingrained from an early age.
We've all been indoctrinated by well-meaning and well-intentioned people: school teachers, parents, or even our industry. Society, especially our industry, is always wanting to sell us something. But you should be selling yourself your own dreams, not somebody else's.
How to Make Your Dreams a Reality
It starts with a blueprint, a game plan, and acknowledging where you are today. What assets do you have? What skill sets do you have? Building and combining those will help you reverse engineer the vision you have for your life.
You must define constructs and milestones to measure along the way, so you're not just crossing your fingers until age 65, the conventional retirement age, hoping you’ve arrived.
Hoping a dream will manifest itself is not a plan. Too many hard working doctors and business owners are frustrated and feel like they are running on a hamster wheel. The older you become, the less time is on your side. Every moment is a gift.
If you don't make a change today, what will change for you? Your life will remain the same until you do.
So whatever your dream is, whatever future “someday” you desire, step up and take action.
Make today the day of your epiphany.
Make today your “someday”.
Don’t wait until life forces change upon you or until it’s too late to enjoy the outcomes you desire.
To your freedom!
– David
P.S. Starting next week, I am launching a small, private online group specifically for doctors who are considering or in the midst of a practice transition (full or partial sale).
I will be laying out a financial roadmap to successfully navigate your exit and invest for replacement income while protecting your nest egg from market volatility.
Time is running out to receive direct feedback on your specific situation. This could be the action you take that propels you to the life you want. You can get all the details here.
P.P.S Whenever you’re ready, here are some other ways I can help fast track you to your Freedom goal (you’re closer than you think) :
1. Schedule a Call with My Team:
If you’d like to replace your active practice income with passive investment income within 2-3 years, and you have at least $1M in available capital (can include residential/practice equity or practice sale), then schedule a call with my team. If it looks like there is a mutual fit, you’ll have the opportunity to attend one of our upcoming member events as a guest. www.freedomfounders.com/schedule
2. Become a Full-Cycle Investor:
There are many self-proclaimed genius investors today who think everything they touch turns to gold. But they’re about to learn the hard way what others have gained through “expensive” experience. I’m offering a free report on how to become a full-cycle investor, who knows how to preserve and grow capital in Up and Down markets. Will you be prepared when the inevitable recession hits? Get your free report here.
3. Get Your Free Retirement Scorecard:
Benchmark your retirement and wealth-building against hundreds of other practice professionals, and get personalized feedback on your biggest opportunities and leverage points. Click here to take the 3 minute assessment and get your scorecard.
