What Are You Worth?

What is a person like you worth? This was a question poised to Lee Brower, author of the Brower Quadrant, by one of his clients. It is an interesting question. Your first response would naturally be financial but is that all?

What are you worth to your family?
What are you worth to your business?
What are you worth to your friends?
What are you worth to God?

With these questions, I have defined the four quadrants that Brower discusses in his book. The bigger question is what are your assets? I will unpack each of these a little differently.

The first set of assets will be referred to as Core Assets. Core assets are things such as your family, your health, your happiness, your beliefs and your values. What are your core assets worth to you? What are they worth to your family?

The second set of assets is your experience. Things like your education; life experiences, the good, the bad and the ugly; your reputation and traditions. What are these things worth to you? What is this worth to others? Those you work with? How about your life story, what is this worth to your children? I never really understood my mother until she was on her death bed. This was when she really began to open up about her life. I wish I had known this years before, it would have affected my relationship with her in a very positive way. Does your family understand your story and the impact it had on your life and your behavior?

The third set of assets are referred to as your Contribution Assets. Where do you spend your God given time, talents and treasures? How are you giving back to the under resourced? How are you giving back to God? What are you teaching those around you about how you care for others? Do you live a life of gratitude or greed?

Last, but not least are your financial assets. Your money, houses, stocks, bonds etc. What is the value of your financial assets?

Now if in your estate you could pass on, only three of the four sets of assets, what would you really like your children to own; what would you pass on? What would you hold back?  To saythis another way:

Would you trade your health for more money?
Would you trade your family for more money?
Would you trade your values for more money?

We all make these types of decisions every day. When I ask, what is a person like you worth? My guess is that it is a lot to those you work with; to your family; your friends and those organizations or causes you care about. Do you live each day with the thought of your real value and invest accordingly? If not this should be food for thought.