Are You A Financial Olympian?

A sprinter launches off the starting blocks on a blue track in an empty stadium. The athlete is wearing a gray tank top, black shorts, and blue running shoes, captured in mid-stride with dramatic sunlight highlighting the scene.

Did you watch the Olympics? Sadly, I did not see nearly as much as I would have liked, but I popped in here and there. The level of discipline, dedication, single-mindedness, and commitment these athletes have is so incredible! Think of the sprinters who train and train for years and get under a minute or two to perform. Years of commitment and sacrifice for two minutes on the track. A split-second might mean a medal or an “also-ran.”

That is a crazy level of dedication for a brief shining moment. I know there are other events during the year, but the input seems much greater than the results on the other side. Yet they do it. Hundreds of athletes, thousands really when you consider all of those who came up a bit short in their quests to make Olympic teams around the world, give their all, pour everything they have into one single goal.

A woman with glasses sits at a wooden table, drinking from a white mug while working on a laptop. There are books, a notebook, and a potted plant on the table. A staircase is visible in the background.

What if we could do just a hundredth of what they do? What if we could sacrifice just a bit more for the goals that are important to us? What if we could stay focused on one important financial goal and not allow ourselves to be distracted by lots of other competing goals? We might just be financial champions in our own little game of life.

I’ve seen athletes talking about making comebacks from injury or setbacks – “it’s all I think about” is generally the comment. What if paying off that nagging debt was “all we thought about.” It’s not quite as fun as imagining ourselves on the podium getting a gold medal, but it will give the same sense of accomplishment! Sadly, there are no cheering fans, no endorsements or interviews for us non-athletes who are striving for our personal goals, but that doesn’t make them any less important.

So, let’s use that Olympic spirit to create and focus on our own financial goals. Let’s apply that Olympic discipline, perseverance, and single-minded stubbornness to defeating debt or going after that promotion, building that 401k balance, or starting that business. It’s never fun in the trenches, not for athletes during the workouts and drills, and not for us making sacrifices and saying no to things we’d like to do, but the pay-off can bring gold to both.

Here is to your financial success!

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To learn more or get help planning your financial goals, please email me at gildea@homrichberg.com.

A woman with shoulder-length blonde hair smiles warmly. She is wearing a dark blue blouse and a matching beaded necklace. The background shows an out-of-focus cityscape through a large window.

Tana Gildea, CFP®, CPA, CCFS, CDFA®

Senior Wealth Advisor, Shareholder

Tana Gildea is a Shareholder who began her career as a financial advisor with a phone call out of the blue in 2005. At the time, she didn’t even know what a financial planner was but quickly realized that she had found her “next chapter” in life after staying at home with four young children and serving in various PTA, Girl Scout, and booster club leadership roles.

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