Have you ever pondered your life with the end in mind? Have you ever thought about your funeral or how will you be remembered? What about your family—siblings, parents, your current or future spouse and children? Will they have fond memories of you and the time you spent together? What accomplishments have you achieved? How financially successful were you?

These are all very daunting, yet very important questions. If you sit down and are truly honest with yourself, the answers could significantly impact the course of your life. With the answers to these questions in mind, you can begin to plan a life that could be more fulfilling than ever imaginable — NOW.

Balance between family, work and money is incredibly important. It is the key to achieving and maintaining a truly fulfilling life. Without it, we are left feeling empty, discontent, and sometimes maybe even lost. Beginning today, your every decision will be made with your outcome in mind.

Money is one of the most essential (and disrespected) elements of our life today. It is an element that requires thorough understanding. You should understand the way money circulates within our economy and how it ultimately impacts you. It is important to understand the basics of money, such as how to use it to achieve your objectives, debt and how not to become a slave to bad economic decisions. Money can help you and your family enjoy an exceptional lifestyle; without it, you can struggle. Through bad economic decisions you can’t pay your basic bills, you have no savings, and you can’t take family vacations. In a worst-case scenario, without an understanding of money, you could lose your home.

The fact is that life is full of decision-making. You can decide how much money you want to make. You should make this decision based on the outcome that you desire—this includes your choice of career. You have more control of your life than you think.

It begins with a life plan. When you make decisions with the end of your life in mind and work backward, you are formulating an effective life plan. While the crafting of your life plan is important, it is, however, even more critical that you stick with it. You must be willing to make changes in your life in order to stay committed to your plan.

Understanding money gives you a greater appreciation of it. You know how to make it work for you instead of you working for it. You lose your poor spending habits and stop spending without thinking. After you begin to understand money, you need to then discover the source of your previous misconceptions. This establishes the framework for a lot of your thinking about money, life and many other areas. Once you understand where you came from, you can figure out where you can and should go.

Now you are on the right path to finding balance in your life; but first, you must change your old way of thinking. Your current way of thinking can be very difficult to shake, but you can do it. You must become a willing and active participant in the path of your life.

Remember, you are in control of your life. It can begin to be truly fulfilling when you make decisions about every aspect. Life is not without its ups and downs. Decide what’s important to you. Decide what kind of lifestyle you want. Use the instructions provided to put a plan in place and follow it. This may involve changing your current job in order to achieve your goal. Always remember, you are in control. You must understand this and continue to move forward with the end of your life in mind. You can achieve amazing balance and harmony through “living your life backward”; and you can begin the process NOW!