[First Reveal] Our Family's 30-Year Life Plan Table That Visualized Our Financial Anxiety
I am talking for the first time about the "30-Year Life Plan Table" that I have only mentioned by name until now.
I got so enthusiastic and packed it with our family's know-how that it became a bit long, so please feel free to open only the parts you want to know from the table of contents.
However, I would be happy if as many people as possible could learn what this "30-Year Life Plan Table" that saved our family is like.
Even if you keep a household account book,
even if you save money,
for some reason, the anxiety about money doesn't disappear.
There was a time like that for our family, too.
How much did we spend this month?
Where can we cut back?
Can we review our fixed costs?
Of course, that is also important.
But what our family was truly anxious about
was not just this month's expenses.
Can we really live properly while raising three children from here on out?
Education expenses.
Home mortgage.
Retirement funds.
Money spent on cars.
Income that decreases due to childcare leave or shorter working hours.
Family time that we still want to cherish.
The more I thought about it in my head,
the more the anxiety grew.
What made our family's financial anxiety
visible little by little
was the30-Year Life Plan Table.
Anxiety that couldn't be seen with just a household account book
A household account book
is very important for seeing the current flow of money.
What are we spending money on and how much?
Are the fixed costs too high?
Are there any expenses we can reduce without strain?
To know those things,
a household account book is very useful.
But in our family's case,
there was anxiety that didn't disappear with just a household account book.
That was,
the anxiety of not being able to see the money in the future.
What will happen to education expenses when the children grow up?
Can we prepare for retirement while paying off a mortgage?
Is the household budget okay even if Dad chooses childcare leave or shorter working hours?
Will enjoying trips or Disney affect our future?
Just reviewing this month's expenses
didn't really provide an answer to this anxiety.
The trigger was buying our own home
One of the triggers for our family's growing financial anxiety was
buying our own home.
The mortgage began,
and we started a life with large, fixed monthly expenses.
After that, around the time our eldest son was born,
there were periods when I had no income.
Our family growing.
Owning a home.
Starting a life with children.
Even though these should all be happy things,
there was always a sense of financial anxiety somewhere in my heart.
"Will we be okay like this?"
"Will it be even harder if we have three children?"
"Do I really need to earn more money?"
I would sometimes think things like that.
The 30-Year Life Plan Table my husband made for me
At that time, what my husband made for me was a
30-year life plan table.
Honestly, when I first saw it, I was a little scared.
Looking at our finances 30 years into the future,
I thought it would only increase my anxiety.
But even for me, someone who is not good with numbers,
my husband explained it like this.
"It's not a table to predict the future, but a table to see the true nature of our anxieties."
Hearing those words,
my heart felt a little lighter.
The 30-year life plan table
is not a perfect future prediction for our family.
Our income might change.
Our children's career paths might change.
I think prices and systems will also change from here on out.
Therefore, the goal is not to predict things accurately.
For our family, the 30-year life plan table is
a blueprint for our family's future.
Items we include in our table
In our family's 30-year life plan table,
we include the flow of major expenses.
For example, these are the items included.
・Projected Income
We consider the income of both mom and dad, including reductions due to childcare leave or shortened working hours.
Since we both work at companies where regular pay raises can be predicted to some extent, we reflect that future income growth in our life plan table.
・Monthly Living Expenses
This is the money spent on daily life, such as food, daily necessities, utilities, and communication costs.
The key to this life plan table is that we roughly estimate these monthly living expenses for when the children are in elementary school, junior high school, high school, and university.
Of course, the increased amounts are just rough estimates (laughs).
However, since it is certain that expenses for food, lessons, and communication will increase as the children grow, this estimate is essential.
・Mortgage Loan
We look at how monthly repayments will affect our future household budget.
Since interest rates have been rising recently, we adjust the amounts accordingly.
・Education Expenses
We look at the timing of school advancement for our three children and the money that will likely be needed, in rough terms.
・Retirement Funds
In our home, we are planning for this while also utilizing iDeCo.
・Money Prepared via New NISA
We view this as one of the ways to prepare for the future, including education expenses.
・Car-Related Expenses
We also include large, one-time expenses such as vehicle inspections, taxes, and replacements.
For car replacement costs, we estimate the resale value at the time of replacement and save the difference.
・Travel and Disney Expenses
In our home, we don't consider travel as just a luxury, but as an investment in family time that can only happen now.
・Reserve Funds
We also include a buffer so that sudden expenses don't put too much strain on our household budget.
・Childcare Leave and Shortened Working Hours Periods
We also include periods of reduced income in the table from the start.
・Fixed Asset Tax
Although it is only once a year, it costs over 100,000 yen, so it is an expense we cannot ignore.
・Home Appliance Replacement Costs
We save up so that we can replace them on roughly a 10-year cycle.
Beyond that, our "30-Year Life Plan Table" calculates the balance of these items on a yearly basis until the age of 65 when we receive our pensions..
What do you think?
Doesn't visualizing the items that will cost money in the future help you see what needs to be done?
Have you ever thought about your balance not just for now, but until retirement?
Thinking about it this way,
the anxieties that were swirling around in my head
gradually started to take shape.
Things that changed after making it
After creating the 30-year life plan table,
our household budget management changed a little.
First of all, I stopped
just being afraid of education expenses.
When you think about it for three children,
of course, it is a large amount of money.
However, by looking at when and what kind of expenses might occur,
it became easier to think about 'what we can do now'.
The same goes for retirement funds.
If you think about education expenses and retirement funds all together,
the anxiety becomes too overwhelming.
But when you look at them separately,
what to do now and what to think about later became a bit more organized.
And regarding Dad's paternity leave and shorter working hours,
instead of deciding based only on emotions,
it became easier for us as a couple to discuss.
A decrease in income is, after all, a source of anxiety.
But when looking at it within the flow of 30 years,
it is not just a negative,
but can be thought of as a choice to protect the family time we only have nowas.
We also started setting aside travel expenses in advance.
In our family, we sometimes go to Disney three times a year.
In the past,
'Is travel a luxury?'
'Even though we have education expenses, is it okay to go?'
I might have thought things like that.
But now, we budget for travel expenses in advance as well.
Instead of going only if there is money left over,
we set it aside from the beginning as money to be used for family time.
By doing so,
the guilt when enjoying our travels has decreased a little.
Of course, we don't spend as much as we want on everything.
While preparing for the future,
to enjoy the present as well,
we are looking at the balance in our own family's way.
A chart that protects the present, not one that binds the future
Calling it a 30-year life plan chart,
might sound a bit difficult.
But for our family,
it is not something for managing detailed numbers perfectly.
It is also not something to stir up anxiety.
It is something to make invisible anxiety visible.
And,
it is for talking about how we want to live as a family.
Our family,
does not just want to save money at all costs.
We also do not want a household budget filled with nothing but sacrifice.
What we want to value is,
spending with conviction.
While preparing for the future, we also want to cherish our time as a family today.
For that purpose, we have a 30-year life plan chart.
Others are others, and our home is our home.
I believe the right answer for money differs from family to family.
How we think about education expenses,
how we prepare for retirement funds,
and how much we spend on travel,
are surely different for every family.
Therefore, our family's 30-year life plan chart,
is not the right answer for anyone else.
But, for our family,
it has become an important foundation for facing our financial anxieties.
It doesn't have to be perfect.
It's okay if it changes along the way.
It's fine to review it a little bit every year.
Ever since I started thinking that way,
talking about money has become a little less scary.
By looking a little bit at the next 30 years,
I can cherish our family time today with peace of mind.
For our family, the 30-year life plan chart,
is that kind of blueprint for the future.
Others are others, and our home is our home.
From here on out, too,
not to eliminate anxiety,
but to give it a shape that we can face.
I want to continue organizing our family's finances,
little by little.
I would be happy if this,
even slightly lightens the burden for those who feel anxious about education expenses, home loans, or retirement funds.
The person who created this 30-year life plan chart is none other than my husband.
It has been about 8 years since our income dropped to zero.
It seems he spent a long time creating this chart through trial and error.
The specific numbers managed in this chart are compiled in a paid article, so please take a look.
It would encourage me if you could like or follow.
I also post about our family's financial management and family time on the Instagram linked in my profile.
If you'd like, please take a look there as well.