The Ghost of Money Present
In our first Scrooged installment, we covered how the Ghost of Money Past may be affecting your thinking as you make monetary decisions. In this second part, we look at the money behaviors you're currently exhibiting and considering where there might be room for improvement. It’s important to understand how your learned attitudes affect you, so you can figure out where your financial holes are. Then, make changes to make it more likely that you achieve your desired outcomes. In pursuance of this understanding, ask yourself some questions: What do you like to spend on? What do you hate to spend money on? Why? What if any saving habits do you have? If you had $200, would you buy something or do something? How does your concept of money affect your decisions on a day-to-day basis? As you gain more understanding and insight into your own preferences, you can begin to see your Money Present take shape. From there, you can begin to find the ghosts.
When I was a semi-professional poker player, I had to study my own game. Where were my “leaks”? In other words, I had to identify the weakest parts of my game where I consistently made mistakes. In terms of your personal finances, you need to discover what your own “leaks” are. You need to understand where you are making mistakes with your money. These are your Ghosts of Money Present. Sometimes you are simply spending money in one place when you really should be putting it somewhere else. Or you are not getting the most value out of your money. None of us will ever be perfectly clear of these Ghosts of Money Present that are all around, but having someone who can help you use your money in the best way possible for you can help you feel better about your situation and get you on the path to where you want to go.
If you are trying to figure out why you have not been as successful with your money as you’d like, perhaps you’d like to set up a conversation with us to figure out how to improve. Reach out to us for a discussion today and see if we can help you improve your financial decision making.