Managing money tips
the biggest fear for most people when it comes to money is:
mismanaging a big sum of money when you get it (losing it)
it not consistently coming (big month once and nothing the next)
never being able to get ahead or make the big sum of money you want (never having it)
I think these all make complete sense because at some point in our lives we will have 1 or all 3 of those happen to us or we might watch our parents struggle with them too.
The big underlying emotion of money that we all fear is TRUST.
How can I trust money to always be there for me?
AKA
How can I feel SAFE with money?
I can tell you from my personal experience that making a lot of money in months or in 6 months.. didn't make me trust money or feel safe with money.
It felt really freaking good and I want all women to know that feeling but it didn't solve my trust issues with money.
That’s where a lot of us get stuck with money.. we think if “only I made more” then I could feel safe with money, then I could have more than enough.
I’ve been there and done that and it didn’t.
We can also look at:
lottery winners
athlete’s
trust fund kids
OR anybody else who has come into a lot of money and lost it all…it’s obvious they didn’t trust or feel safe with money either.
You know what made me feel safe with money?
Managing money:
It came down to me finally feeling in control of money
finally feeling like I know what I'm doing with my money, and
I feel confident about the decisions I'm making with money.
Truly sitting down with our money, looking at all of it (the good, the bad, the ugly), and having our own reflections on our choices with money are the things we have to do to pull our heads out of the sand with money.
It would feel so nice to not have to make decisions with money or look at it or think about it.. but that's how we get to the unsafe place with our money.
Because we don't understand it AND we don't understand why we're not in control of it!
You get to change that story.
You get to be in charge with your money.
You get to confidently make decisions with your money ( decisions that are right for you and not just the "right" financial decisions)
You get to make a lot of money because you know what to do with it when it comes in!
If you’re just starting out on your money journey and you want to know..
What are some tips for managing money?
Start here:
Step #1: Do an EMOTIONAL evaluation of what your money has been doing.
Where you are right now financially is a reflection of what your thoughts and goals were 1-2 years ago.
You’re probably different than the person you were 1-2 years ago.
(Hiii global pandemic changed ALL of us, I’m sure.)
What does your money say about what your goals were then?
What do you want your money to say in 2 years from now?
For example: 2 years ago:
I started building MORE debt after almost being half way out of it.
I convinced myself that I just needed to make more money in my business and I would be done with all my debt. Sound familiar?
That lead me to investing more in my business, I should have been more responsible. But it tells me that at that time my spending got a little crazy and that warns me about the future.
That I have times when I can be irresponsible with my money while I’m trying to chase my “next income goal".”
It tells me that my focus wasn’t on paying off debt, it was about going to that next level. But for me next level at that time in my life didn’t make sense because my priorities changed after I got pregnant!
Right now:
I’m almost completely debt free and I have a 6 month savings account.
I finally feel like I see the bigger picture of financial freedom (it’s living off an index fund with savings I’ll funnel into it). It means not carrying debt, it means treating my money like it’s the ultimate key to freedom, because it is.
Not using my money to give me a quick high of feeling good or spending it on things that have me appear like I’m successful.
Money is a tool, I’m going to use it like one.
I’m so excited to see what Shannon in 2 years from now thinks!
If you wrote this same money evaluation what would yours say?
Step #2: Get clear on your financial goals
This might seem obvious and depending upon how your income works (whether your business owner and your income fluctuates OR if you have a job, this is going to be different).
For business owners: we tend to set income goals but not financial goals and this is where we don’t manage our money.
We might set an income goal of to make $10K months but beyond that we don’t know what we’re going to do with our money (this the most important part of managing our money).
IF you want to make $10K months: what is your financial goal for making $10K months?
Great you’ll make $10K in revenue and after taxes and expenses, what do you want that money to do?
Do you want to pay off debt? Put money to savings? Invest your money back into your business?
(if you want to know if you should pay off debt vs savings, watch this video here)
(If you don’t have time to watch it, bottom line: build a savings account before paying off debt, this will stop you from building debt and it will stop you from GOING back into debt. That’s what I did and talk about at the end of this video).
Income goals are great, keep doing them they give you a focus and purpose but now let’s decide what happens BEYOND the income goal with your money.
For people with jobs or consistent paychecks: Where is your money GOING?
This is all managing money really comes down to, is being able to say “I know where my money is going and I like where it’s going.”
That’s really the bottom line of managing money. I’m going to say something that I’m sure you have heard OVER AND OVER again.
YOU NEED A BUDGET.
That’s the best place to start with managing money. Managing money is a bad ass and baller move, it means I want to start making better decisions regarding my money.
That’s why millionaires all have budgets!! Because they didn’t get to millionaire status without a budget!
(if you’re resistant to budgeting, watch this:)
If you are already on board with budgeting but just don’t where to start, I have the BEST software for you.
It has a 34 day free trial and it is the best for changing the way you think about your money. Using YNAB has completely changed my life.
I was able to budget for the first time in my life, pay off over $20,000 of credit card debt, create a 6 month savings account, and finally feel like “I have enough” money every month.
Grab your free trial here:
Step #3: Are your money habits building wealth?
Managing your money is about knowing where it’s going and knowing that where it’s going is.. BUILDING WEALTH.
There’s so many decisions we make daily regarding our money choices without asking ourselves the question: “is this building wealth?”
A lot of the times when we make decisions with money we’re asking ourselves: “will this make me feel good right now?”
Wealth really is a lot about discipline.
Being disciplined enough to forgo the feel good moment of now and instead use the money for the future.
Wealth building is all about the future.
Let’s think about how your money is currently being used:
Grab this free “How to Find More Money” work book + create a 6 month saving account master class to figure out where your money is going that’s currently not building wealth.
After you complete that worksheet, I want you to do something fun.
Add up how much money you spent on a leisurely thing you can cut out or cut back on for a whole year:
Example: I switched from getting my hair done at a nice salon that cost me on average $250 to dying my own hair that will cost me $50.
I typically spent: $1,000 on getting my hair done
Now I spend: $200
That means I get $800 to do this super cool next thing I’ll show you
Head to this website: https://www.calculator.net/investment-calculator.html
Now put in your number and fill in the other fields according to this picture:
YES NOW SCREAM OUT IN PAIN AS YOU REGRET ALL YOUR DECISIONS WITH YOUR MONEY 😂😂
Okay so this screenshot above is the amount of money I’ve put to credit card debt + the amount of money I spend on minimum payment + interest = INSTANT REGRET OF GETTING IN CREDT CARD DEBT.
But THIS IS WHAT WEALTH BUILDING LOOKS LIKE!
True wealth is using your money to make more money like a tool.
This example is if I was to invest in low cost index fund and get a 7% return (average return).
This is how you build wealth. You put into assets that GROW and not into things that don’t grow your money.. like hair dye and Starbucks.
Before I go here’s some example of assets that grow over time and (TYPICALLY) don’t depreciate:
Stocks (401K, low cost index funds, ROTH IRA)
Property (homes or investment properties)
Bonds
(Here’s a great example of more assets with their risk)
Here’s what wealth building can look like for you:
Did this article help you understand what money management looks like?
Do you feel like wealth building is clear?
What have I skipped or missed, let me know in the comments!
Again if you’re ready to finally figure out how you can manage your money to get you wealthy..
Grab this freebie down below:
