What is Your Most Valuable Financial Asset?

Within our society we can fully comprehend (and finish) the jingle: Budweiser is… “The King of Beer”. But, when we ask an individual on the street what their greatest financial asset is, a great percentage typically respond: “My house”. “401(k)”. “My investment portfolio”. The correct answer “My health” is rarely ever stated. Once said this answer is quickly understood, seems obvious after all. Your health is the source of your ability to be productive and to earn a living. Your health is your greatest source of personal and financial wellbeing; it is, in short, your most valuable private property right. Without it, your house, your retirement fund and your quality of life all rapidly decrease in value. Where would you be without your health—without healthability? …the answer is obvious: personal and financial disability.

Investing actively in your health is critical to your personal and financial wellbeing. Your health is truly your most valuable asset. If you understand that your health is your most valuable asset, then you might wonder: “how do I actively invest in it?”

If you are to be financially successful, you know that you must work hard, budget and invest to enjoy and improve your life and lifestyle. With any financial security asset, investment of time, effort, and money are all keys to your success. The same is true when it comes to your health. Improved health, healthcare and healthcare security requires your active effort, taking direct responsibility for your improved health, healthcare spending management, healthcare risk management and healthcare savings.

Healthcare spending is budgeting time, effort and money (daily) for healthcare expenses whether it is taking time to exercise, watch your diet, follow your prescriptions, renewing a gym membership, buy healthier foods, etc.

Risk management is as important for your health, healthcare and healthcare security as it is in managing any other investment. We buy home owners insurance to protect our homes, auto insurance to protect our cars. In this context, medical insurance plays an important role, however like our home and auto insurance it is also only one element of the risk management process. Homeowners insurance doesn’t increase the value of your house; it does not create greater personal and financial wellbeing. You must first and foremost, take care of your assets through active management and daily investment.

A critical requirement of personal and financial wellbeing is saving for the future. This is also true with your health, healthcare and healthcare security. Your individual savings accumulated for the payment of future healthcare services when a healthcare need materializes is very important, to your personal and financial security.

If you do not save money for the future whether it’s in your 401(k) plan, personal checking account or even in the equity of your home, the prospect of someday retiring comfortably is lost. And if you do not save for your future healthcare expenses, your future security and retirement plans could drastically change. The average spent, by age 70, of retired Americans on healthcare is almost 50% of retirement income—this makes saving specifically for your future healthcare vitally important to your future personal and financial wellbeing.

Thinking of your health as the critical financial asset; it is a cultural change and a life changing idea. It is a change that is not easy, but acting upon this realization is essential for maintaining and improving your health, healthcare and your financial security.

Invest in you, by investing in your total health.