Editor’s Note: Train Your Travel Bug

Of the many myths about financial planning, one is that it forces you to compromise on your present lifestyle and desires for a future that’s uncertain. It’s easy to justify that belief: there are so many things that you can do only now and not when you are older. Fit into a particular dress or flaunt a sassy cut, eat as much as you want without worrying about your sugar or cholesterol levels, even travel where you like and how you like without losing sleep over how it will affect your knees or back. Moreover, who has seen the future?

The philosophy of living in the present is deeply rooted in Indian tradition, but of late it has found new meaning. Many among the younger generation swear by the belief, ‘you live only once (YOLO)’, while the older ones are turning towards practices of yoga, mindfulness and so on to tone down anxieties, many a times about their future, and to root themselves in the present. The YOLO cohort can easily descend into recklessness that can spell disaster, and the mid-aged worriers find themselves at the crossroads.

Needless to say, financial planning is not about securing the future—an intangible reality that is not under anyone’s absolute control—at the cost of the present. It is about controlling what you can, and to the extent possible. The decisions you take now can define your present as well as your future.

A few months ago, for an Outlook Money article, we asked a finance professional what young individuals should do with a Diwali bonus. The answer was they can splurge it for their wants and on festivities. The question was a part of a longish questionnaire on aspects of financial planning, and the other answers were about planning, budgeting, avoiding debt, and so on. We checked back with the professional, who explained that the idea was that it’s important to strike a balance between celebrating life and making each penny we earn work for us.

So, if you have the travel bug in you, no one is asking you to kill it. Do nurture it, but also tame it in a way that it doesn’t bite you in the back. Train it to rear its head when you can afford to feed it. A little planning will help you do so.

Everyone travels these days, at some point or the other, for some purpose or the other, in some way or the other. There are those who travel for leisure, some for a brush with history, some to soak into nature, others for work, and still others to be part of family get-togethers. Most like to travel with family, some for individual peace or passion. Some like it luxurious and some will budget their way into multiple destinations. The best part is that for each of those preferences, there’s a plan that you can curate—to sort your trip as well as your finances. Happy holidays!