The real driving force behind why someone has more or less money in the bank is because, compared to you (and others for that matter), they have completely different ideas about what they want and why they want it.

One of the problems with the financial world is that there are no benchmarks for people to take a look at and compare themselves to. People may feel a little ashamed that they spend every dollar they earn or happy that they save a little here and there, but without any meaningful target they don’t really get to have that “ummm, what the hell am I doing?” moment or the “I’m killing it” moment either.

So let’s get down to the question: “How much money should I have in the bank?”

Some arbitrary numbers from a US project suggests that

• At age 35, you should have saved an amount equal to your annual salary.
• At age 45, you should have saved three times your annual salary.
• At 55, you should have saved five times your salary.

But what good is money in the bank without a purpose?

If you had $100,000 extra in the bank, would you actually feel any different. Hint: The answer is absolutely not!

The real driving force behind why someone has more or less money in the bank, assets and other worldly possessions is because, compared to you (and many of us for that matter), they have completely different ideas about what they want and why they want it.

Boom!

So the first step to being happy with your financial situation isn’t how much you should have by now or what should you invest in. It’s about asking yourself “what do I want?”

What’s my money going to do for me? Not from an investment point of view, but from a results sense.

Passive income is a common goal I hear. A conversation may go along these lines…

“I would like to create a passive income stream using investments.”

“Why?”

“So I can retire early.”

“Why?”

“So I can travel more often.”

“Why?”

“Because it excites me to experience different cultures and learn about other customs.”

Brilliant – very motivating!