The Mindset Behind Making Financial Change Happen.

For starters, your wallet needs to hurt.

Nothing makes a person move more than wanting to lessen whatever pain they’re dealing with.

And so many of us are dealing with financial pain.

I’m not blind, and I know this blog applies to people who have a little bit more and can afford to change things around regarding their finances.

I was living with family members when I started working on my savings goal (my housing was subsidized).

But after moving out and my expenses increased significantly (rent is by far my biggest expense), I continued making progress, and these are some of the reasons why.

It all starts with how you view change, money, and goals.

You must WANT financial progress MORE THAN immediate gratification.

You must really want to meet your goals.

I remember the moment I chose to change my finances. I had turned twenty-six and had recently started bartending.

This is one of the reasons why I was able to kick-start my savings goal — I got a second job.

But I also remember how excited I was at the opportunity because I had been looking for an opportunity to work and make more money.

I wanted to use my free time to do something productive.

Getting a second job sounded perfect at the time.

I wanted to prioritize my goals; I wanted to stop going out on weekends and spending unnecessary amounts of money and regretting it once Monday rolled around.

I wanted to significantly improve my finances because I was tired of hearing myself say, ‘I’m going to change and do better,’ but not getting up off my a** and doing something about it.

I wanted to start making progress more than anything else.

I was committed to making a change, and this is one of the reasons I was able to start changing my finances for the better.

You MUST make meeting your financial goals one of your TOP priorities.

It has to be at the top of your list.

Wanting financial change more than anything else meant it became a top priority.

I remember I had an index card I taped to my mirror that had a breakdown of how much money I wanted to start saving every month.

Now that I had a second job, that goal became more attainable.

Another thing I started doing was tracking all of my income and expenses.

The only way to make financial change a priority is to make it a priority.

You must make yourself aware of what’s going on with your money. How do you spend it once you have it?

The only way to do this is to get intimate with it.

This is why, to this day, I prefer to write down everything I spend on a piece of paper (I use a journal).

When I take the time to look at the numbers on my banking app and then transfer that information to a piece of paper, my mind records that information (more or less).

I’m constantly aware of my finances because I make an effort to open up my banking app, look at what came into my checking account, look at what came out, what my credit card balance is, and so on.

I check these numbers almost daily.

I made knowing these numbers a priority, allowing me to know exactly where I stood and what kind of change I could make.

You MUST be willing to CHANGE your habits and ideas around money.

Wanting change also means being willing to change.

When I got the offer to bartend on weekends, I was ecstatic about it because it meant I was finally going to use up my free time in a way that would help me move forward with my financial goals.

I was willing to give away that free time in exchange for progress.

In addition, I was willing to take that money and not spend it — this is something I see people do in the service industry all the time.

Bartenders and servers make good money, and it’s easy to fall into the trap of spending that money immediately.

However, I wanted financial change and progress more than anything else, so I challenged myself to put that money away rather than spend it.

I was willing to delay my gratification and give up some of my not-so-great spending habits.

Don’t get me wrong.

I didn’t go cold turkey with miscellaneous expenses.

I gave myself a budget.

But if I spent what I had allotted myself that week or month, I committed to wait until the next week or month to treat myself again.

Because I wanted financial change above anything else, because I made financial change a top priority, I was able to change my habits around money, which, in the end, is what gets you to move forward and make progress.

You can adopt this mindset to any other area of your life — the gym, a healthier lifestyle, improving your relationships or friendships, etc.

I hope this helps you on your journey, and quick disclaimer:

This information is not to be considered financial advice. This is for information and entertainment purposes only. If you need financial advice, please get in touch with a financial services professional who can help you with your specific situation and goals.