I mentioned in a previous blog post that we are often our own worst enemy when it comes to money. In that blog we looked at Love Languages and how they can make us vulnerable financially. Of course there are other personality traits, habits and addictions that you may have to battle with besides your Love Language if you want to take control of your money and create wealth.
Nobody is exempt from the need to look at themselves in the mirror and ask what they need to do to protect themselves from themselves. We would all love to be able to make any purchase, donation or contribution we feel like making at any time we feel like it.
However, the reality is that even the wealthiest people still have financial limitations they have to live by. In fact the reason they are wealthy is often because they have recognised the need to protect themselves from themselves at an early age.
So when you are ready to accept that you do need to do something about this, you have taken a huge step forwards, well done! But where do you go from there?
Firstly you need to be honest with yourself and identify the times, places and habits that are causing you to NOT do what is in your best interest.
Once you’ve done that, you then need to identify ways you can make it hard for that activity to continue. For example, If you realise you’re making a lot of impulse purchases with your Credit Card you might choose to remove it from your purse or wallet, and put it in a glass of water in the freezer so you can’t just pull it out on an impulse. You have to go home and thaw it out!
Another strategy that helps a lot is to use bank accounts to separate money for different purposes so you know when you have spent this week’s entertainment allowance as an example.
Once you have recognised the behaviour that is causing the problem, decide what you want the behaviour to look like, and then design the protection that will give you that outcome and monitor its effectiveness.
Protecting yourself FROM yourself is one of the most important steps you can take in your wealth journey. Why not look at it today!?
Take Control of Your Finances
If you can take control of your spending by making some of the little changes above, you’ll put some breathing space between you and your money stress, allowing you to relax and start building a stable financial future for your family. How many expenses do you accept in your day without question, and where could you reduce your weekly outgoing money just by changing a few habits? If you just can’t get your head around that and/or you are tired of money stress and have decided it’s time to take control, talk to a Spending Planner to find out how you can break the cycle. BOOK A FREE CALL
You have nothing to lose and lots to gain. Spending Planners are non-judgmental professionals who are trained to help. A short relationship with a Spending Planner will provide you with tools and training that will benefit you for the rest of your life!