Enjoy Today but Have a Plan for Tomorrow

YOLO (You Only Live Once)

We've all heard this phrase, and it definitely holds true. Another is "Life is short". Also, but only sometimes true. While we know that we only have one life to live and tomorrow is not promised, we cannot spend every dime we have to our name today because if we are fortunate enough to see tomorrow we still must be able to "live".

This is not meant to be a dark topic, but in life, we must make complicated financial decisions.

Because YOLO, you may want to enjoy life to the fullest, and that you should. This, however, is not an excuse to be irresponsible. Enjoying life to the fullest does not mean blowing all of your money on fun and entertainment.

• Yes, you can have a social life. 
• Yes, you can go on vacation. 
• Yes, you can treat yourself.

Before you do all these things, just make sure you have some sort of plan in place. Create a budget for the major categories in your life. How much do you want to spend on fun and entertainment? How much vacation can you afford without stretching your budget too far? Do you have a savings account/rainy day fund? The idea here is to enjoy today, the present, but also have a plan for tomorrow, the future.

What's the point?

There must be a balance. In life we're allowed to have fun, but we must also be financially responsible. If there's no balance at the end of the day, week, month (figuratively and literally), you're looking for trouble. Even if you're not in a place in your life where you can put lots of money into savings or retirement, making saving a priority is a first step in the right direction.

Remember, at the end of the day it's about being prepared and planning for the future in between all of the fun. The hard truth is if you don't think about your savings and retirement, no one is going to do it for you. What we really want to avoid is having nothing when we reach retirement. So the message here is live for today, but remember there may be a tomorrow. Are you ready(financially speaking)?