Bugs on My Windshield
Riding for Reflection
I love to explore the country I live in riding my iron horse – a 1995 Harley-Davidson motorcycle. The exploration or the process of getting lost is just part of the adventure. The droll of the engine provides the perfect opportunity to set back, clear my mind, and ponder all of the different things that are happening in my life. The summer also brings out one pesky thing… BUGS!!! When cruising around during the day, those bugs splatter all over the windshield and my helmet visor. If I’m less fortunate, I might catch a larger bug like a June bug on the neck – OUCH!!! On many occasions I will leave the mess on the visor or windshield thinking to myself, “I don’t really want to stop just yet.” I am also fond of thinking, “I’m almost there.” Unfortunately, by not taking the time to clean these surfaces, I only make matters worse. Why?
Motorcycles – at least on my vintage – don’t come with windshield wipers nor do helmets. Sure, I could reach up and use my hand to wipe the mess away but that would leave big streaks! When I am not near other oncoming cars, this is not a big issue. However, lights pointing at a buggy or streaky surfaces make seeing what is in front of me impossible at times. Depending the bug coverage, sometimes you feel like you are just aiming the bike into the unknown because the light is so dispersed. The better thing to do – to make sure I come home in one piece to my bride and kids – is stop and clean the surfaces. It really doesn’t take that much effort and the results are fantastic.
Financial Applications
What do motorcycle windshields, helmet visors, and bugs have to do with finance? To manage our money well, we need to create a plan – known by some as a budget or spending plan. That plan forces us to reflect on the reality of our situation and how we want to achieve our goals. Like the bugs on the windshield and visor, life events pop up and smear themselves over our best laid plans. Maybe it is the inflated cost of goods. Maybe it is new clothes for those ever-growing weeds you and I call kids! Maybe its unplanned emergencies. Maybe it is like the June bug to the neck – job loss. In each of those scenarios, we all need to… Identify the mess (new expenses to the plan). Assess the size of cleanup (reallocate the funds). Clean the mess (pay for the expense). Start riding again (continue to execute the new plan).
Questions to Ponder
How often do you operate your budget or spending plan just hoping things will get better?
Is your budget or spending plan meeting your current needs?
To cleaning our field of vision and organizing our finances!
Jacob Zimmerman
P.S. If you are a superhero fan, consider “the plan” from The Flash’s villain Captain Cold (Leonard Snart). Just don’t forget to create a new plan 😊 Click Here to go to Youtube.