一位父亲给毕业生儿子的人生建议

Adapted from Wall Street Journal: 2014-05-31

不久，我在圣路易斯(St. Louis)观摩了儿子亨利(Henry)在华盛顿大学(Washington University)的毕业典礼。在他向成人世界进发之时，作为父亲，我会给他提供什么建议呢？我尽所能尝试给出了以下这些父辈们的人生智慧：

1. 假如你不注意的话，你会一生都在追求你自以为会让你永远快乐、但实际上只会给你带来极短暂快乐的目标。你会渴求下一次的晋升与加薪。然而，几个月后，那只不过是一份数额不同的薪水而已。你会贪求更大的房子和崭新的汽车，但是六个月过后，那所大房子将只是一个住处、新车也只不过就是个在城里四处走动的工具。

这里所讨论的问题是一种被称为“享乐跑步机”的现象。我们追求这些目标，当然它们也会给我们带来很大的快乐。但是，我们很快就会变得不满足，又开始去追逐别的东西。

2. 你们这一代人会拥有极长的寿命。2000年，美国初生婴儿的预期寿命中值为77岁，而一个世纪前出生的人的预期寿命中值只有47岁。此外，随着年龄的增大，你们的预期寿命还会延长，这表示当前为65岁的人有望活到85岁左右。其结果是：你们成为了一项大规模实验的一份子，数百万人不仅将在职场中度过前所未有的漫长年限，他们的退休生活也将是空前地漫长。

3. 从现在起的20年后，你可能会没有现在这么快乐。我们一生当中的满足感往往呈U形变化，据报道我们在40多岁时的满足感会跌至谷底。

可能的情况是，在我们成人生活的头几十年中，由于我们开始意识到自己年轻时的雄心将无法实现，我们的幸福感会随之降低。进入中年，我们开始接受这一现实，这时我们的幸福感会开始回升。

4. 你会想为自己构想一种人生，在这样的人生中你能从事自己热爱的事情。我们往往在为自己认为重要的目标而奋斗时觉得最快乐。

你想要升职和加薪以便买房买车，这都没问题。但是，如果你为此付出的代价是从事自己所厌恶的工作，那么你就是自寻苦恼。从事自己热爱的工作是很重要的事情。旅程实际上比目的地更为重要。

然而，在一个你有望活到八九十岁的世界中，一段旅途或许还不够。若要拥有充实的人生，你也许还需要偶尔换个职业。在你退休之时，努力也不应停止。在50多岁和60岁出头时，你应该好好考虑什么能让你的退休生活有目标感。

5. 致富的秘诀并不是什么秘密：你需要很好的储蓄习惯。是的，确实有人继承了大笔财富或建立了成功的企业。但是，大多数的美国富人都是通过一月又一月坚持不懈的储蓄而致富的。

6. 一开始，金钱能买来很多快乐——但是自此以后，它能带来的快乐就没那么多了。假如你能帮助别人脱离贫困，你就能大大提升他们的幸福感。但是，此后再要让他们明显变得更快乐似乎就需要大量金钱了。

7. 积累财富的动机就是让你不用为钱发愁。这有点像健康问题。只有当你生病时，你才会意识到感觉健康是多么美好。

同样地，只有当你缺钱时，你才会知道拥有稳健的财务基础是多么美妙。金钱的积累或许不会让你幸福——但是没有钱可能会让你极其不幸福。你要达到的是无需为金钱烦忧的境界。

我们如何把以上这七个方面联系起来呢？眼下让你感觉开心的职业，在20年后或许就不再让你快乐，那时你可能会想做些截然不同的事情。你想要做的事或许很重要，但可能不能给你带来丰厚收入。

我的建议是：在头几十年的职业生涯中为自己打造稳健的财务基础，这样一来你就能自由地从事自己心仪的任何职业了。

这表示你要拼命存钱。尽管如此，你也不会错失很多东西。你渴求的所有那些财物只会给你带来微乎其微的快乐，真正能让你快乐的是努力追求你对之满怀激情的事物。我会鼓励你好好管理自己的财务，如此你就能做到这一点了。

The millionaire in you

财富管理方面都是一些众所周知的理念：指数基金，长线投资，等等。此书反而是其他的内容让我觉得很有共鸣，虽然也知道一些，但是作者总结的很好。

Quote 1: you are a grown up when you can laugh at yourself

Q2: invest your time actively and your wealth passively

Q3: exercise to clean your body, learn something new to clean your mind, listen to music to clean your soul, laugh everyday--a sense of humor is incredibly healthy!

C1: live the life you want instead of the life others expect

• what do I want out of life? where, who, how
• translate your dreams into goals, career, family, recreational, community, person relationship, self-esteem, religious and spiritual
• check your goals for compatibility and set priorities
• translate your goals to action plans

C2: stack the odds in your favor instead of against you

• long-term gain is never the result of short-term thinking
• life is a daring adventure or nothing
• get a good education but don't overpay
• choose the right kind of career
• you enjoy and find meaningful
• holds your itnerest
• makes the most of your talents
• gives you a feeling of accomplishment
• enables you to live the lifestyle you want
• ensure good health
• live in an area of low cost of living
• marry once to a frugal spouse who shares your vision of financial freedom
• buy a moderately-priced home
• have a moderate number of children

C3: be a super saver instead of a big spender

• a million dollar buys you freedom, not extravaganza
• saving is better than earning
• financial freedom is free
• saving is as simple as VST: vision, strategies, tactics

C4: increase the market value of your time instead of working long hours

• you don't have to be the one who works the most hours, just the one who is most there during the hours you work
• keys to building value: what you do, how well you do it, the difficulty of replacing you
• focus on employability instead of job security
• earning is rooted in learning
• create a side income, build your brand
• practice lateral loyality
• be a practical imagineer
• use feedback as a basis for improvement
• know your value and don't be afraid to leave a job
• Money flows to value

C5: do less better instead of trying to do it all

• time management
• decide what's most important
• sent goals and priorities to do what's most important first
• develop good habits to do what's most important most efficiently
• the way to get more done is to do less better
• two traps to avoid:
• confusing activity with productivity
• confusing urgency with importance
• how to do less better and get more done
• have a daily quiet time for reflection and planning
• carve out large blocks of time to work on important activities
• make the most of prime time
• say no to the unessential
• keep a loose schedule with a backup plan
• attack important jobs with a single-minded focus
• automate as many clerical,repetitive and trivial tasks as you can
• delegate everything but genius
• conquer the clutter
• take steps to block interruptions
• be the master of your telecommunications tools instead of their slave
• ask yourself: what's the best use of my time and energy right now?
• never take time for granted

C6: capitalize on the unexpected instead of being derailed by it

• keep your eyes on the prize
• don't be afraid of success
• use disappointment as an incentive to spur you on to even greater success
• don't let other people's opinions limit your success
• remember that every time one door closes, another door opens
• hang loose, take your dreams, your goals and your work seriously, but not yourself
• the principle purpose of life is to enjoy it, and taking yourself too seriously defeats the purpose
• when you take yourself too seriously, you tend to physically and mentally tighten up. It hurts creativity, and we tend to get very rigid in our behavior.
• your grow up the day you learn how to laugh at yourself
• hang loose, be flexible, treat it like a game, enjoy the journey and leave the long faces to those whoa re going to live forever
• never, never, never quit

C7: own the market instead of trying to beat the market

• own and hold index funds

C8: limit your losses instead of letting bad luck ruin you

• insurance
• don't smoke
• exercise regularly
• if you drink, limit yourself to two drinks a day
• wear seat belts and don't drive under influence
• eat the right food and maintain the proper weight
• get enough rest
• get regular medical,dental and vision checkups
• smile and laugh a lot

C9: listen to those who know instead of who sell

C10: do it now instead of regretting it later

J1: stay financially independent

J2: keep physically and mentally active

J3: experience the joy of giving something back

J4: remember, the journey is the joy