The Legacy JourneySample

Then: Adopting a Future Focus

We’ve said that the first step of The Legacy Journey—the Now—requires you to keep your head down and focus on getting your financial house in order. You’re learning to live on a budget, and you’re working hard to pay off debt. You’re making steady progress. And, maybe for the first time in a long time, you’re experiencing hope!

Now helps you deal with your most pressing concerns. For example, you should build an initial emergency fund of $1,000. You also should create a plan to pay off your debt. One way—called the Debt Snowball—knocks out your smallest debt first then applies what you were paying on that debt to your next smallest debt. This lets you enjoy some victories as you work your way out of debt once and for all. When you’re debt-free, you can fill out your emergency fund so you can cover three to six months of expenses.

So what happens next? What happens when you start to take some control over the things that have held you down for so long?

Well, you move from Now to what we call Then.

In Then, the pressure starts to ease just a bit and your head begins to tilt up. You begin to see beyond your present situation and start thinking about what’s down the road. Then challenges you to adopt a future focus.

Then gets you moving forward. You start saving for retirement and for your kids’ college fund. You start paying off your mortgage. Best of all, you start to realize that there is a future beyond your next paycheck.

Proverbs 29:18 says that without vision, people perish. Then gives you the freedom to embrace a vision so you can thrive in the days to come. The alternative is to perish—and nobody wants that!

As you continue walking down The Legacy Journey, live with a vision that fuels your passion. Then, use that passion to expand your legacy beyond anything you could have imagined before.

Creating a lasting legacy doesn’t happen by accident. You have to be intentional. The Legacy Journey will give you a deeper understanding of investing, basic estate planning, safeguarding your legacy, and discovering the keys to generational wealth and true generosity. Visit daveramsey.com/legacy to learn more.