Money. A small subset of us invented it, believing it was better than the barter system. The rest were forced to adopt it. The thing is the people who created it got a head start on the masses. At times, it takes generations for a family to understand money and figure out how to set it on autopilot for generations to come. The sad truth about this is it only takes one generation to throw it all away. This truth makes the future generations, barring going against the odds, destined for financial stress and uncertainty.
This stress is the life of 80% of us. 5% of us are richer than most can imagine with enough money to take a generation or two of crappy money managers. That leaves 15% of people who get to live the lives of what the 80% is striving for in life. They are not affluent but they don’t live paycheck to paycheck and will not be in deep trouble if they lose their job. This situation is the goal. We call this financial freedom. It takes work, lots of patience, and attention to detail. There is a good chance you’ll encounter many setbacks. These setbacks will cause you to question yourself. Am I meant to achieve this? What is so against me doing so? Do I want to keep trying? It is hard but so is being broke. Choose your hard.
When financial stress and uncertainty pay us its monthly or weekly visit, it hovers over us with an aggressive pressure feeling accompanying it. We contribute to it from ignorance and stubbornness. Ignorance in ignoring the need to budget. The stubbornness in seeing the need to do so but not doing it. Financial stress is caused by a lack money or a solid plan to follow. The most common is lack of money. If you looked online, you’d think that everyone is well off. The recent stimulus packages have sure shown that many of us qualify for money meant for those suffering from financial hardship. That check should be a sign if you didn’t think you were in the aforementioned 80%.
There was a recent study following the money given to Americans. One would think the money went into stocks, bonds, crypto, or real estate but, no. The study showed that the majority of the money went to athletic apparel. Sneakers/Tennis Shoes? Um, yeah. If the government qualifies you as “broke,” you are. Still doing better than the average person in this world but, poor for an American. You can still live as if you are not but, that digs you deeper in debt and more dependent on that job. The debt causes financial stress because it eats away at what should be money to invest or save. The uncertainty that will haunt your every waking day will be because of losing or not being able to lose a job that you don’t want. 95% of us go through this but, no one talks about it. We are too busy acting as if we are in the 5%.
The first step is admitting you are not where you want to be with your money. The second step is to find something or somethings that have the potential to change that. Yes, just the potential to change will do. It may take you months to years to find that one thing you do very well but once found, you’ll find yourself in that coveted 15%. Hey, who knows, you may get to the 5%. You’ve been doing so well acting as if it were so already, the real thing will be a breeze. The third step will be investing and growing that new money. Real estate, crypto, dividend stocks, growth stocks, whatever you decide is fine. Make your money work for you.
The fourth and final step is to do steps 2 and 3 over and over again until you find yourself in a financial position you could never reach in your best dream. That is what it is all about. You’ll be helping yourself and a couple of generations after you. That is real wealth. You are taking financial stress and uncertainty away from people who have yet to take a breath on this earth. That is the goal.
In closing, when it comes to finances, we must be disciplined. Money management isn’t something we should “wing.” Money is something that can come and go but can also appear, multiply, and stay. Delayed gratification doesn’t have to mean not enjoying life. The delay can mean having an 8/10 trip scheduled and making it a 10/10 knowing everything you are doing is on budget rather than a 10/10 trip that will quickly feel like a 6 or 7/10 because it will take you 12 months to pay off the credit card.
Embrace having money around. Learn to love what a plan can do. You’ll enjoy setting up a financial plan. You’ll know, if you follow the strategy, you’ll have everything you’ve put in your budget. It’s a great feeling that you deserve.
Food for thought…You do the dishes.
