Money: State of Imbalance
Financial freedom results from effectively managing our finances, and how we handle our finances is how we conduct our lives. Are you having difficulty managing your personal affairs? Do you feel lost and confused more often than you’d like? Do you feel like other people are in control of your life? Do you feel powerless? If your attention is glued to this post, I bet your money is also imbalanced.
How do we get out of balance regarding our finances? By making poor choices over an extended period. It simply doesn’t happen overnight. We spend a little beyond our means and needs one day, then we do it again the next day. Before we know it, we’re in debt and can’t understand why.
What compels us to make poor choices? First, it’s our beliefs about money. Some of our ideas about money include the following:
- Money is the root of all evil
- Money solves all problems
- Once in debt, always in debt
- Hard work gets you nowhere
- Money can buy you anything
- Looking good is everything
- We must keep up with the Joneses
Fear. Financial Instability.
Second, fear compels us to make poor choices. We feel inadequate and afraid of what people will think of us. We want to keep up with the Joneses and look for a sure way to impress others. We want to have the biggest and best house on the block, send our kids to the most prestigious school, drive the most excellent vehicle, and lay claim to the most incredible array of techno gadgets. Indeed, fear plays a significant part in financial instability.
What about you? When the topic of money comes up, are you uncomfortable? Do you think, “I wish they’d change the subject?” Do you get defensive?
So how do we get past the belief system that obliges us to live irresponsibly? We take action and lots of it. Here are a few suggestions:
- Pay yourself first. Stash 10 percent of your paycheck away; save it. Don’t spend it. Please don’t make it a rainy day fund. Just save it. Some of you might think, “I can’t afford to save ten perfect.” Then save 5 percent or whatever you can.
- Spend less. Just because it’s there doesn’t mean you should buy it.
- Avoid debt. Not a difficult concept to grasp, but it eludes many people. Our buy-now-pay-later society encourages us to amass debt at whatever cost.
I invite you to examine your behavior around money: how you spend it, why you spend so much of it, where you spend it, and what you need to do to manage your money and your life a little better.
FRANCINE D. WARD, ESQ.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY & ESTATE PLANNING LAWYER
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