The Government forces you to put aside/invest 9.5% of your wage (which will no doubt rise with inflation) for Superannuation because it doesn’t trust that you’ll be financially fit when you retire.
What if the Government insisted you put aside/invest a measly 2-2.5% of your wage into health & fitness? Would you object or would you welcome this idea?
I do believe in investing in Super and I also strongly believe in investing in your health for the long term (like in your 60’s, 70’s and beyond).
After all, you only have one shot at life and to live life on your terms with fulfilment in both wealth and health as a retiree is how life is meant to be lived. Right?
Have you heard of the story of a lady whose life goal was to walk a section of the Great Wall of China? Well if you haven’t, I’ll summarise it for you now.
Let’s call this woman, Mrs Jones. Mrs Jones’ life goal or bucket list adventure was to walk the Great Wall of China. When Mrs Jones finally had the freedom in terms of time and finances she was able to book her once in a life time trip.
The only problem was Mrs Jones had let her health deteriorate as she aged. In fact, her health plummeted so much that she was unable to walk more than a few meters at a time.
What did Mrs Jones do? Well, she still went to China but only to see the wall…not to walk it like she’d dreamt of for so many years.
It’s so sad to hear of bucket list adventures being stripped away from millions of people due to poor health and ignorance. If only they took their health a little more seriously whilst in their 20’s, 30’s, 40’s and 50’s.
The problem is, most people think they’ll live to Don Bradman’s average of 99.9 with a full functioning body. Hate to break it to you, but the odds are definitely not stacked in your favour.
So, my question is this – what are you going to do about it? Like Super, are you chipping away and investing in long term health? If not, do you think you should start thinking about it? Do you think you should start slow and “compound” your health?
Well, all of this depends on the aspirations you have for when you retire…but ultimately, the choice is yours for the taking. I know what I’d prefer!
Coach Jay – Co-founder at P360