It is no surprise that the number one reason for divorce is money. Furthermore, it is no surprise your placement in society’s totem pole is dictated by how much you make than any other factor – education, popularity, faith, morals, or good looks (sorry to spoil your day). A stroll through today’s news will show that “newsworthy” people incidentally make a lot of money or they’re worth a lot of money. And if you’re not worth big bucks, knowing someone with money is just as good, think HBO’s Entourage. If you haven’t watched the show, it’s a series about Vincent Chase (starring Adrian Grenier) who hits it big in the movie industry and takes his entourage along for the ride.
The media, your family, church and corporate culture all reaffirm the belief that wealth and worth are the same. According to society you are better by having material possessions. This explains why people are so consumed by Forbes “richest billionaires”; get rich quick schemes; climbing up the corporate ladder; the new or second home; and the expensive-unreliable European car. People have 70 hour work weeks and sacrifice personal and family time to “get ahead”.
Tip #1: You can’t feel financially free if you continue to consume as society tells you to.
Having money and possessions alone won’t do it either. You have to have more money than your friends. An article from Medical News Today shows a study conducted by Pennsylvania State University that concludes “relative income” has a stronger impact on personal happiness than “absolute income”. People are generally not happy about driving a new Honda Accord (ahem, proud owner), but they are happy that they are driving an Accord while their peers drive the 1980s beater with a busted muffler. This is known as I’m-richer-than-you syndrome.
Tip #2: You won’t feel financial freedom if your happiness is contingent on having more than your peers. There is always bigger and better.
“Feeling” financially free is evidently linked closely to happiness. The interesting thing is, it has more to do with your mentality and state of mind than it has to do with the size of your pocketbook. It’s sad to see that so much happiness depends on hoarding and the diminution of your peers – but that is reality, to an extent. These unbecoming tendencies are just like nasty habits. But like most habits, they can be broken.
Some practical ways you can break your habit:
Admit. You can’t break a habit unless you admit you have one.Autosuggestion. Pro athletes and leaders use this technique to achieve great results. A simple process like speaking to yourself has tremendous effectiveness.Accountability. Confess to people you trust and have them keep you accountable.Replace the bad with the good. When breaking a habit inactivity can aid remission. Start replacing unproductive thoughts with productive thoughts. Focus on congratulating the successes of other people (be genuine of course) rather than your lack of success. Enjoy your own lawn instead of checking to see if your neighborhood’s grass is greener.Reward yourself. As you make progress, reward yourself for little victories. Forgive yourself. If you stumble – which always happens as you’re breaking a habit – forgive yourself. Don’t get hung up. Admit it and move on. Visualize. Another powerful tool athletes and great leaders use. Visualize yourself without the habit and how much your life will be better for it.Acknowledging wealth is not worth and not comparing yourself to others is not enough. “Feeling” financially free is not just a state of mind or worse yet, denial. Ignoring your bills won’t make them disappear. Nor is flippantly hitting the “kill” switch – bankruptcy. The first step to feeling financially free is crafting reality to match sentiment. Start stopping the bleed by lowering expenses.
Consider expenses you don’t need…and cut them out. Some examples:
Eating out – Not Eating Out in New York has great tips on thisMovie dates that cost $35 after tickets, popcorn and parkingTivo or other digital recordersSatellite radioATM feesGolf and it’s expensive peripheralsLatest iPhone, iPod, or anything that iJobs hawks at youMultiple digital cameras and video recordersWoot! (I had to throw this one in there for my buddy who’s a Woot! junkie.)Video game consoles and their $45 games, $60 games (my friend Nate, way more a gamer than I just messaged me to correct)….You get the point. Obviously, these are just a few items you can live without. If you’re honest with yourself and sit down you will find many things you can part with. So, part with them!
Being overwhelmed with bills and expenses can prevent you from your road to financial freedom. As you start to cut back and make progress, you stop living paycheck to paycheck and have flat screen TV bills looming over your head.
Last note, this article is not just for the lower and middle-income earners. Even if you make $250,000 per year you can just as easily get caught in consumption or comparison mania. The more you make, the deeper you dig.
Change your mentality, cut back and start feeling financially free today.
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