Brandy Long

Money Mindset

Things To Learn To Repeat

The following are essential things you never learn in school or life, that’s why the success seems so elusive to most people.

Develop Money Awareness

The first step in enhancing your financial health is to build your money awareness. Where does it come from? What are you spending it on? How much do you save? Many people simply ignore how money flows through their life. They don’t budget or they simply assume that money is and will continue to be a “problem”.

If you want more money in your life, you absolutely need to avoid being fearful about any lack of money. Focusing on the lack simply creates additional stress. And stress prevents the clear, focused thinking you need to bring more money into your life.

Make a commitment to become more aware of money in a positive way. Begin to think of it as a resource to be managed and wisely used. You will find you have more money available than you thought you had.

Develop a Positive Money Attitude

Examine your attitude toward money, financial health and prosperity. Money will not come to you if you have a rejecting or fearful attitude toward it.

Some people end up creating money-challenged lifestyles because they refuse to be responsible for how they handle their money. This can be corrected by simply changing how they manage their relationship with their money.

Develop a Spending Strategy

If you want increased prosperity and abundance, it is important to learn to handle your money more effectively.

* This starts with spending less than you make. This simple but often ignored truth gets many people into debt over their heads. It is essential that you track your cash flow and take control of your spending. If you’re living on your credit card, something has to change. You are racing down a dead-end street.
* Create a budget and stick it. (Try to cut back your spending by 20-25%).
* Take a careful look at your life and you will find this is possible. Pack a lunch, stop eating out, repair things yourself rather than just trashing it, get a video instead of going to the movie theatre–better yet, go to the local library and check out a video for free. (That’s what you’re paying tax dollars for). Just plain live life simpler!
* Draw a clear distinction between what is a need and what is a want.

Develop a Savings Strategy

The amount you save is not as important as developing the habit of saving! Even if you can only save one percent of your earnings, just do it!

* Once you commit to your savings strategy, stick to it every day. In a short time you will have the confidence to gradually increase your savings to a minimum of 10 percent.
* By “paying yourself first” you will soon realize there is no longer the inability to save at the end of the month.
* At the present, most people pay their bills and at the end of the month there is nothing much left.
* Set aside something, anything, and do it consistently and put it in a place where you aren’t tempted by indulgence-like a savings account.

Take steps toward saving

Remember:

“Life by the yard is hard, life by the inch is a cinch”.

Don’t be overwhelmed by the daunting task of reducing your $50,000.00 debt, reduce it by $1,000.00 and learn to repeat that 49 more times!

Develop an Investment Strategy

While you are building up your savings, commit some time to learning about investing. Check out books from the library, or take a course on investing at the community college. The big goal is to learn to get your money working for you so you don’t have to work for it! There is power in compound interest. (More on that, later)