Since the National Ditch Your Resolution Day has already passed (January 17th), let’s focus instead on trying to change the way we think about money this year – one small step at a time. This is a huge subject, so it will be broken into several parts and keep an eye out for our March Webinar where we will be diving deeper.
COMMON MISTAKES
Not managing our expectations:
“If your expectations rise faster than your income, you are never going to be happy with your money. No matter how much money you make.”
“Managing your expectations is more in your control than managing your circumstances.”
Morgan Housel (The Psychology of Money)
- Action ideas:
- Take the time to be grateful for the things that you have. (Someone around the world is hoping for your situation.)
- When you get a raise or a bonus, keep your current lifestyle for a period of time to help pay off any debts or build an emergency fund rather than increasing your spending.
Video: Importance of managing expectations
Not looking at your finances on a regular basis:
The simple act of increasing your awareness of every dollar coming in and going out reduces the amount of impulse purchases and generally brings the reality of your situation into greater focus.
- Action ideas:
- Start with a “guess” of how much your expenses are. Click here for a printable worksheet to help you.
- Then track your expenses for the next 4 weeks to see how close your actual spending was to your estimation. Click here for a printable worksheet to track your spending and deposits.
Not checking to see if what was agreed-upon was actually what was charged:
Unfortunately, in our society it seems that a lot of promises are made and then sneakily not fulfilled. Because we want to trust people we often take their word for it and do not check to make sure that what was promised was what was delivered.
- Action ideas:
- Whether buying groceries or a new appliance, check the receipt before you leave the store. Especially when prices are changed regularly, the sale price may not have been properly changed in the system.
- Take a screenshot or a photo of orders you place or reservations that you make.
- When the product is delivered or billed, check to see if the product delivered and the amount billed is equal to the original agreement.
Unfortunately, life can be filled with frustrations and hardships and the key to surviving them is adjusting our mindsets and expectations and training ourselves to tune into the details.
Remember, you’ve got this!