MONEY THOUGHTS: Plan for the many dimensions of your complex life

AS I write this, our world is again on tenterhooks because of possible attacks on Iran and its threats to retaliate against its Gulf neighbours.

Oil prices have spiked, with Brent crude briefly going above U$D117 a barrel. United States embassy staff in parts of the Middle East have been evacuated as a safeguard against Iranian or Houthi rebel attacks.

Fast-changing circumstances cause energy and other commodity prices to whipsaw.

By the time you read this, things could be better (hopefully) or worse (tragically) because a lot can — and often does — happen in a day, a week, a month, or a year.

With circumstances swirling about us, how do we cope?

In last week's column, I wrote about a Matrix-Enhanced Retirement Plan; you may read it here: www.nst.com.my/lifestyle/sunday-vibes/2026/10/1562815/money-thoughts-consider-matrix-enhanced-retirement-plan

In it, I explained how mathematicians and physicists use matrices to calculate changes occurring simultaneously across different dimensions, and then pointed out these factors:

1. The downside of taking too little investment risk;

2. The importance of growing passive income streams even as we earn active income;

3. The huge advantages of working longer;

4. The wisdom of taking care of our bodies and minds;

5. The need to recognise how the Law of the Excluded Alternative plays a role in our expense choices; and

6. The balance we need to maintain across the three dimensions of a financial plan: wealth protection, wealth accumulation and wealth distribution (readily remembered using the mnemonic PAD).

I'll elaborate on them for you:

INVESTMENT RISK

In these scary times, it is comforting to hold high levels of cash. We have all heard the adage "cash is king". There are times it's true.

But what I have learnt over decades of investing and consulting is that each time "cash" perches on its throne, it doesn't stay there for too long.

We should always keep sufficient layers of safe cash. Yet holding too much cash for too long sterilises our much-needed long-term portfolio returns. Years ago, I created the Devadason WANT Model to teach my clients and students about the four dimensions of investment risk:

a. Our Willingness to take risk;

b. Our Ability to take risk;

c. Our Need to take risk; and

d. The Time we have to take risk.

Key takeaway: Hold sufficient cash, but not too much. Invest wisely to grow your wealth faster than inflation and taxes erode its buying power.

PASSIVE INCOME GENERATION

When retirement rolls around, we will — by definition — no longer earn active income. Yet our need for money doesn't stop with our work; it stops when our heart does.

Key takeaway: Use a sizable chunk of your active income to buy assets that spin out growing streams of passive income in retirement.

WORKING LONGER

Not everyone has the choice to work beyond the official retirement age. Yet where possible, this laudable goal should be pursued.

Each year we work beyond our official retirement shortens our needed retirement funding period because our mortal lives are like a finite piece of string.

Key takeaway: The longer you can work throughout the middle, prime, segment of your life "string", the shorter the third portion will be — the bit that starts with the cessation of actively earned income and ends with death.

SHARPENING THE 'SAW' FOR OUR BODY AND MIND

What is of greater importance than adding "years to our life" is adding "life to our years"!

Some ways to do so are to have regular medical checkups, exercise consistently, eat well, sleep and hydrate enough, and stay relationally, socially and mentally active.

Key takeaway: During your working decades and then your retirement ones always heed Stephen Covey's 7th habit taught in his bestselling book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. That habit boils down to us making time each week for self-renewal in all dimensions of life.

ACKNOWLEDGING THE LAW OF THE EXCLUDED ALTERNATIVE

We may want it all, but we can't have it all. For most of us, our limiting factor is money. Yet even billionaires with enough money to buy all the stuff and experiences they covet come up against the rigid unbreakable wall of time.

Key takeaway: When you spend your money and time on item A or experience B, you no longer have that chunk of cash or cache of time for, say, item C or experience D. You need to make choices, so choose wisely.

FOCUSING ON PAD

A complete financial plan encompassing wealth protection, wealth accumulation and wealth distribution is an ideal goal to shoot for. But we can never perfectly structure each of those three dimensions because of the conflicting demands of the other two upon our limited resources of money and time. That's life.

Key takeaway: Identify, set, and often revisit your key life goals encompassing all three PAD dimensions. Make tweaks whenever your circumstances and aspirations change — a little or a lot. If appropriate, work with a licensed financial planner to help you on your life's journey from where you are to where you would like to reach.

© 2026 Rajen Devadason

Rajen Devadason, CFP, is a Securities Commission-licensed Financial Planner, professional speaker and author. Read his free articles at www.FreeCoolArticles.com; connect with him on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/rajendevadason, or via rajen@RajenDevadason.com. You may also follow him on X @Rajen Devadason and on YouTube (Rajen Devadason).