Top 5

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Top 5

Prioritizing your life and money

I love top five lists. They fuel debates—which I love— and quite frankly, they say a lot about the creator of the list. For instance, who are your top five NBA players?

If I had to go in a game based on this list, I would go to battle with:

1. Magic Johnson G
2. Michael Jordan SG
3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar C
4. LeBron James PF
5. Kobe Bryant SF

Yes, I am a Laker fan, and I’m absolutely positive that this squad would beat any other team you can come up with. Side note—Michael Jordan isn’t the greatest player to ever play the game… that would be Magic Johnson, of course, but Michael is good enough to be the only non-Laker to make this list.

Better yet, who are your top five rappers or rock bands.

For me, the top five rappers are easy. I’ll go with:

1. Tupac
2. Biggie
3. Kendrick Lamar
4. Eminem
5. Jay Z

Drop the mic, I win! I can take any battle with my squad. You throw Dr. Dre on the beat, and you have an automatic classic.

Gin and Juice

Now that was definitely fun, and I’m sure you have learned a little more about me. I also have a top 5 when it comes to money decisions.

What are your top five when it comes to your priorities in life? Have you ever asked yourself that question? I’m talking about seriously contemplating what’s important.

Since we all know that we will transition from this Earth, we have to decide what beat we are going to rock out to.

I’m kidding, but at the same time, I’m serious. I remember when I first got my driver’s license. I had the song picked out for weeks. I was not moving my car until I got it to that track, and I played that song over and over again.

Gin and Juice

To my recollection, I had never had gin. I had had juice, though.

for me, it was the lyrics…

“Rolling down the street smoking Indo, sipping on gin and juice!”

By the way, I never had Indo either, but I was rolling down the street—and that’s what mattered.

My Top Five

Just like in that car before my first solo drive—I still want to make sure everything is done the way I envision it. At the end of my life, I want two things: great memories and to know that my children are happy. That’s it, baby. So, what are my top five?

1. Marriage
2. Kids
3. Health
4. Financial Future
5. Spiritual/Mental Health

Boom! I’m done. Drop the mic! That’s a beautiful top 5!

Those may not be your top five, but I suggest you get a top-five and use it to help make financial decisions.

So, how does my top five influence my decision making and money? Well, if I needed to improve any of those five things, I would spend a lot of money on them; however, if it’s not in my top five, I’m not spending a lot of money on it—PERIOD.

I also work very hard to make sure that my top five is balanced. For instance, I don’t put my kids over my marriage—it’s just not a good thing to do. Then again, I don’t put my marriage over my kids. I don’t put my marriage over my health. I also don’t put anything over my financial future. So, my list, unlike the other lists, is not in order of importance. I can interchange these five easily.

My list represents the importance of financial stability, and I need to be financially secure to succeed in every element of my top five.

Why Your Top Five Matters

When making a decision, you should ask yourself, how does this impact my top five?

For instance, how does buying a brand-new iPhone impact my family? Does it help any of my top five if I buy a BRAND-NEW iPhone? Now some may try to explain that they need it for their mental health and that somehow the iPhone puts them at ease.

I would argue that my wife could care less about me owning a new iPhone, and my children would care even less unless I was buying it for them. It really depends on my financial status, whether or not I buy it. I have to be in a particular place, financially, before I reward myself with something like an iPhone.

What about something more complicated, like sending your kid to private school? Now, this may be for the betterment of your children, but is it a smart financial move? Maybe you want to control your kids’ environment, or you don’t like your local school, but WAIT there are a lot of things you need to think about before you make this decision.

1. Can you afford to do this for all your future children as well?
2. Will this cause stress in your life: marriage, health, spiritual/mental health?

If you can’t adequately afford to send your kid to private school, then you may be putting your child’s education over the rest of your top five, and that may wreak havoc on your life.

What about adequately saving for your financial future? Some studies have shown that American’s savings rate is at 7.8%.

I hate to break it to you, but this is not enough. Are you saving enough for your future so that you and your wife are comfortable? Do you have enough to help your children out in the future when they need help?

If you choose to send your kid to private school or buy that car, or purchase that home, are you able to save enough for your financial future?

These decisions can affect your physical health and mental health—choose wisely.

It is not wise to put one of your top five over the rest. They have to be in balance, and yes, I will choose my finances over my children. For the right reasons, I do it all the time!

One last thing. What about you!?

What about your spiritual and mental health? Most of us put everything over ourselves. Self-care is at the end of the list. Exercise—last. Eating right—last. Meditation—nonexistent. When is the last time you gave yourself time to be bored without the influence of the outer world? When is the last time you walked on the beach or went for a hike ALONE! No husbands… No kids.

It’s not fair that you can’t even sit on the toilet without little figures sliding under the doors chanting your name. We ALL have to get away sometime and just be.

So please, share with me your top five; how will you prioritize them?

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