How many times have you told yourself it’s time to get your finances in order? And how many times have you gotten discouraged, given up, or not even gotten around to it? Probably more times than you can count. Why is it that for so many the desire to better their financial situation is there, but putting it into action just never seems to stick? Because finance is all about numbers, and numbers just aren’t enough to keep people interested and motivated. It’s all about financial motivation!
When you think about your finances, what comes to mind is probably paychecks, interest rates, debt totals, minimum balances due, budgets, net worth, taxes, the list goes on. There is nothing fun or motivating about it. It’s all just numbers, and unless you’re a mathematician or work in finance, you’re probably not going to get excited about any of it.
LOVE AND FEAR
What you need to do is discover your motivation. People are generally motivated by two things – love and fear. Now I could use scare tactics to frighten you into taking your finances seriously. I could ask you things such as:
- How and when do you expect to retire if you never get out of debt or build up any savings or retirement accounts?
- What happens if you lose your job tomorrow and you’ve been living paycheck to paycheck?
- What if you become ill in your old age and need expensive long term care? Who is going to pay for it? Will that burden fall on your children?
- What if another recession is coming?
You might be saying, “Okay, you’ve got my attention. I’m good and scared now!” But fear will only keep you motivated for so long. The only thing that will keep you motivated for the long term is love. It’s all about who you love and what you love to do, and the best way to figure that out is to ask yourself the following question.
If money was no object, what would I do with the rest of my life?
Your first reaction might be “I’d quit my job immediately, buy a mansion and hire servants, travel the world, buy expensive cars, clothes, shoes, ooh – maybe even my own private jet!” That’s all fine and dandy, but realistically, you’d probably start getting bored within less than a year, and then what? If you really think about the long term, more meaningful things will come to your mind. Like spending your time with family and friends now that you don’t have to work anymore, paying for your children’s education, buying a home for each of your family members, giving millions to charity or starting one of your own, starting a business you’re passionate about, etc. These are the people, things, and activities you love.
DISCOVER YOUR MOTIVATION
Take some time right now to make a list of all the meaningful things you would do with your life if money was no object and hang it up someplace where you’ll look at it every day. Let it not just motivate you but light a fire under you. That’s your dream life written down on that piece of paper! Now imagine yourself with no debt, a decent amount of money in savings, and a growing 401K. The truth is, once you have all those aspects of your finances in order, suddenly the things on your list feel more achievable. You see, you don’t need all the money in the world to live your dream life. You just need the financial freedom to go after those dreams.
It won’t happen all at once. You will need to prioritize the items on your list and tackle them a little at a time. But with money in the bank you can start investing, start your own business, pay for college for your children… and maybe someday even buy that mansion and travel the world! There is no telling what kind of life you can build for yourself and your family in the future, but it all starts with getting out of debt, building up savings, basically getting your finances in order.
Motivated yet? Okay, let’s do this! Please comment with the top item on your motivation list. And check out my blog post about budgeting to learn how to create a budget and start putting extra money toward your financial goals!