Maria is one of those clients. She came to us over a decade ago, a divorcee who’d been on her own for a while. She’d been able to remain financially stable for herself and her children and made some really good decisions to set them up for continued financial success. But she didn’t always see it that way. Maria had trouble looking towards the future, but we pressed her and have continued to encourage her along the way using The Humanity Factor. Because of it, she’s become hyper-focused on a future that would make her happy and has been willing to pivot her plan to bring those things to fruition consistently.
About a year ago—retired and in her 70s—Maria decided to follow her heart. Maria lives in Cleveland, but her daughter moved to Boston. As a result, Maria hadn’t been able to spend much time with her. She came up with the goal of selling her house in Cleveland and renting an apartment in a vibrant part of Boston, nearby to her daughter. She knew she’d eventually aim to buy a place in the Boston area and settle down again, but she wanted to rent there for a year or two in the interim.
When Maria presented us with this goal, she had some worries, including being able to apartment-hunt while still in Cleveland and other logistics. She also worried, like so many do, whether she’d have enough money to make it all happen and how it would impact her finances down the road. So, we did what we always do—we proved it to her. We showed Maria she had the opportunity to move states and still enjoy retirement with confidence. Once we relieved her concerns, we encouraged her to go for it. By freeing up her mental space from worrying about money, we left extra time for her to be excited and happy about the decision. Then, we were collectively able to celebrate.
I’m proud of Maria, and it’s been great to see how happy she’s been about this change. It’s put an extra pep in her step. She’s more alive now than ever. The Humanity Factor approach allowed her to do this because it helped her reflect on her bigger future and reflect on the things that were most important to her, in this case, proximity to her family above all else.