Financial Wellness

People have been expanding the definition of wellness to include physical health, mental health, and even social health these days, and I would argue that financial health should also be a part of that definition.

A lot of people growing up in the school system learning about the academics and developing skills but most financial knowledges are coming from the family or parents. In the modern society, financial skills can almost be considered an important survival skills. This is not with the aim to make everyone rich, but at least it should help putting things in perspective. In certain cultures, prudent financial management is passed on as a part of family values from generations to generations. But in some society, mis-management in personal finances can spell disaster for the individual, family and others. Being responsible financially is one key steps in achieving success. But money and material wealth should be considered as only a part of one's value system. Being able to separate the needs and the wants are important. A lot of people knows how to trade securities but not have a financial plan. Even more people go in debt for consumption and see no return. Suppose given careful planning, everyone can be a millionaire at some point in their lives, it's a matter of choice how to accomplish it. It's a balance between time, risk and discipline.

Let me share an interesting scene. During my short stay in Hong Kong, I spent a morning doing the morning walk with my dad. There was some of the last things that I was expecting to see. A group of people who walked along us were talk about Fed rate hike's impact on real estates, the trend on Japanese Yen and recovery, as well as the latest IPOs of Chinese companies. And they asked me my opinions on the currencies, and the Canadian market. These savvy investors in the discussion read multiple newspapers and watch financial channels to follow what's happening around the world, but they are just individuals investing their own retirement capital. And from the appearance, these are just normal people that you see on the streets, they dress casually, talk your everyday topics, but they just have that knowledge and are not afraid to move their capital quickly.

It's a pretty humbling experience, I guess especially for those who think just following the news and others recommendations will be sufficient in financial success. The financial markets may not be perfectly efficient, but there are many many informed and smart participants.