About
It's all about having stability that nobody sees
Look at my logo. It is an illustration of a cruise ship. What do you see when you look at a real cruise
ship? You see a beautiful ship on which there are happy, carefree people enjoying themselves. That is
above the water line and visible to anyone who looks. The cruise ship effortlessly moves through the
water.
But what happens when the cruise ship hits rough waters? The ship would wildly rock side to side! The
people on board would panic! There would be confusion and disarray! That is also happens when someone
lives check-to-check, without a budget, with a pile of debt, and without an emergency fund! They can’t
handle “rough waters” such as a job loss, extended illness, failure of furnace/AC requiring an immediate
replacement, or other unexpected situations.
Well, cruise ships are prepared for rough waters. They have stabilizing fins below the water line to keep
the ship steady during rough waters. They stick out of each side of the ship when needed to keep the ship
stable. Therefore even though there are rough waters, everyone on the ship still feels calm and safe
because the ship is stable. Nobody sees them, but they are there.
People who have a budget that ensures they are spending less
than they are earning, have no debt (other than a mortgage for their primary residence), and a 3-6 month
emergency have the equivalent of stabilizing fins! They can handle “rough waters” until the waters are
calm again. Further than that, they are already well positioned to quickly rebuild their emergency funds.
And like stabilizing fins, nobody can see that you have financial freedom. And you can’t see that other
people don’t. They might have bigger houses, fancier cars, more lavish vacations, but if a storm hits,
they are sunk while you will be just fine.