Define Financial Success

This question has echoes of the ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad’ book which equated, as far as I could ascertain, having lots of money with being a successful father. I may have misread the intention, though I doubt it, but I certainly didn’t agree with it. The definition of financial success is very much down to the person defining it and the mindset comes from a mix of factors.

Society at large now seems to equate financial success as having huge amounts of money, big houses with ostentatious fittings and five or six five star holidays a year. By that measure, all but the Top 1 percent will encounter financial failure. I think that failure lies at the root of the increasingly unpleasant societies we live in around the world. Poor people or those who feel themselves poor want to blame someone for their lack of success and end up being told by incredibly rich people to blame immigrants and disabled people. So, what should financial success mean?

Financial success should mean keeping a roof over your head, whether rented or bought, enough food in the house to make sure your family is well fed, treats for birthdays and Christmas and occasional trips or a short holiday. By that definition we have been financially successful thanks to the financial acumen of my wife. I have also been able to retire from full time work which has been great and which is based on a very clear financial plan not unlike the one at the start of this paragraph. So, your mindset determines what you feel and how you approach life and thereby how likely you are to achieve your definition of financial success.