Sure, if you’re Madonna it’s easy to reinvent yourself.  Especially if that only involves changing your outfit.  Her music has pretty much stayed the same over the years, yet the public has dubbed her the “queen of reinvention.”  The same could be said for many artists over the years.  Dye your hair and throw on some rhinestones, and suddenly you are the better, new-and-improved version of yourself.  But your music still sucks.

An exception that comes to mind is Johnny Cash.  Late (very late) in his career, he took some stabs at various genres, most notably his cover of Nine in Nails, “Hurt,” a performance for which he would win a three CMA awards.  Funny…he was still wearing black, and maybe some rhinestones, but I’m sure they had been around before.

Although Mr. Cash received many accolades for this work, the struggle and sacrifice on the path to reinvention is often lost.  Michael Jordan’s attempt at baseball, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s service as governor of California are examples of how this path to reinvention is not only underappreciated, but often mocked.  And we also see examples in our every day lives.   Like a kid from a poor family putting himself through school.  A single mother balancing work, child care, and a full class schedule.  A father juggling a job he hates with more time with his family.  Throw a recession in the mix, and you can see why the necessity for reinvention is more complicated than just throwing some color in your hair.

The largest hurdle for real self reinvention is money.  The choices we have made leading up to this point have blocked us from what we really want.  A mortgage, car payments, and credit card debts are the anchors that keeps us from moving forward.  I call this stuff my “personal overhead,” and I manage it everyday to ensure that I do not make a choice that will adversely affect my options in the future.  And if a new future is what you want, a true reinvention of yourself, you will need every dollar, and every minute that you can muster.

Think about being free of a car payment.  How much financial flexibility would that give you?  Would it give you more time to educate yourself?  More time for fun?  How about more time to find a better job?

What are your priorities?  What is your criteria for reinvention?

Every dollar spent sacrifices time you no longer have.  Make the better choice for a better life.