Money Beliefs I Hold That Guide My Financial Life

Are your beliefs holding you back? Here are Money Beliefs I Hold That Guide My Financial Life.

1. Philosophy must come before finance: Beliefs That Guide Financial Life

My personal philosophy – what I want to do in life, how I want to live, what type of things I want to accomplish – gives my financial life direction.

I want freedom to travel, to write and create full time, to spend time with people I love, all of which gives me a direction to press towards.

It helps me only spend money on things that are necessary. It provides motivation to find ways to earn more money. Without my personal philosophy, my financial life would lack direction.

2. Working hard in my 20’s is a ticket to a lifetime of freedom 

This belief drives my work ethic.

I believe the work I’m doing now along with the aggressive saving and investing is the ticket to buy my freedom.

While I have no wife, no kids, and very few responsibilities, now is the time to grind and build up my net worth quickly so I don’t have to worry about money at all for the next 60 years.

3. Spending should be entirely based on value: Beliefs That Guide Financial Life

I spend an obscene amount of money on Chipotle because I get an obscene amount of joy from it.

Conversely, I rarely buy new clothing or eat out at expensive restaurants because they don’t bring me enough joy to justify the spending.

Before I purchase anything, I ask myself will this add value to my life?

 If the answer is a resounding yes, I don’t feel guilty spending money on it. Money is a tool, and it should be used to maximize happiness.

4. I plan on working even after achieving financial independence 

Just not in a cubicle. I understand plenty of people find fulfillment in their 9-5 corporate job, but I know myself and my nature well enough to know it’s not for me.

But I do plan on working even after I have the financial means to walk away from a 9-5 job.

I plan on writing, blogging, and creating just as much as I do now. This type of work brings me fulfillment and F.I. offers a beautiful opportunity to do this work full time.

5. The real gift of financial independence is time, not money 

The numbers in my bank account mean nothing to me.

But the freedom they represent makes me truly excited. The freedom to do work I love, spend time with my favorite people, and wake up each day where I get to decide exactly how I spend it is mouth-watering.

6. Life is short: Beliefs I Hold That Guide My Financial Life

Life is too short to not live in a way that I can look back on and smile about 60 years from now. It’s too short to waste money on crap I don’t need.

Too short to not spend time with people I love.

It’s too short to live buried in debt, to constantly worry about finances, to never be in control of my time.

Life is too short to let money prevent me from living my best possible life. I want to be in complete control of my finances so I have the ability to live a life of meaning and fulfillment.

7. Financial Independence is not a guarantee for happiness

I constantly keep this thought in the back of my mind. I don’t expect to achieve F.I. some day and suddenly be filled with eternal and everlasting bliss.

It’s entirely possible to have enough money to never work again and still be miserable. F.I. provides wonderful freedom to cultivate a life that brings happiness, but the money by itself means nothing.

Are Your Money Beliefs Holding You Back?

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If you are bravely marching forward into the New Year with aspirations to improve your financial wellness.

It is important that you are aware of the role your financial attitudes and beliefs have in shaping your future.

These beliefs help explain key differences between savers, spenders, and people who try to avoid money matters completely.

They can be extremely stubborn and are difficult to change since they can become a part of our ongoing “money script” or life story that follows our financial behaviors.

8. Financial wellness starts early in life

Drs. Brad and Ted Klontz used the term “money scripts” to describe financial beliefs that are often developed early in life and are frequently passed from one generation to the next.

No matter where you are on the journey to reach your financial life goals, it’s always helpful to be aware of your past experiences with money whether they were positive or negative.

Take a moment to answer these simple questions:

• What are some of your earliest money-related memories and experiences?
• Was money a frequent source of arguments or was the topic often avoided?

9. Four types of money beliefs: Beliefs That Guide Financial Life

According to research performed by Dr. Brad Klontz and Dr. Sonya Britt, professors at Kansas State University, three out of four primary money beliefs (money avoidance, money status, and money worship) are linked to potentially destructive financial behaviors.

For example, these patterns of money beliefs have been associated with having lower levels of net worth, lower income, and higher amounts of revolving credit.

The other money belief, money vigilance, was not linked to problematic financial behaviors.

10. Do you identify with any of these money beliefs?

In general, money avoiders tend to view money as negative and a source of fear, anxiety, or disgust and often have beliefs that wealthy individuals are greedy.

Money avoiders think that they don’t deserve money or that money is bad and the root of all evil. In addition, they also tend to believe that it’s not okay to accumulate more wealth during your lifetime than you will actually need.

Money avoiders may experience conflicting beliefs that having more money and wealth could improve their life satisfaction, self-worth, and social status.

This belief system can create a tug-of-war between feelings of contempt toward money and wealthy individuals to placing too much emphasis and value on the role of money during their life journey.

Money worshipers believe that having more money will solve all of their problems and money is the key to happiness.

An associated money script is that “things will get better in life if I just had more money.” Another common belief is that the accumulation of more money will lead to increased happiness and overall life satisfaction.

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For the money worshiper, money is viewed as a scarce resource and there will never be enough of it. Money worshipers may prioritize work over family and social relationships.

People with money status belief systems tend to define their self-worth by their financial net worth.

They also place a great deal of emphasis on buying the hottest new items with leading brand names and quality.

Money is a sign of success for those with strong money status beliefs.

As a result, these individuals may pretend to possess more wealth than they actually have and may overspend to provide others with an impression they have achieved financial success.

Money vigilance is typically associated with themes of frugality and people with these money beliefs tend to focus on the importance of saving, use discretion when discussing financial matters and express anxiety about not saving enough for emergencies.

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Money vigilant people are most likely to pay attention to their financial well-being. A common belief for the money vigilant is that people should work hard for their money and not expect financial handouts.

They also tend to be more anxious and guarded when discussing money matters with people outside of their closest network of friends and family.

11. Do your money beliefs support your life goals or are they creating a roadblock?

Some of these money beliefs are not problematic. In many situations, they may even be encouraged. It’s at the extremes where these money beliefs can cause problems. Beliefs That Guide Financial Life

a). Money worship beliefs can lead to compulsive spending, work-life imbalances, and hoarding behaviors.

These beliefs can also be associated with financial dependence, giving money to others they cannot afford to part with, and ignoring or not paying attention to one’s own financial situation.

b). The Money status beliefs are associated with compulsive spending problems and being financially dependent on others. Money status beliefs may also lead to secret spending or financial infidelity.

c). Money avoiders have trouble setting financial life goals and struggle sticking to a personal spending plan or budget.

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This money belief is also linked with overspending and compulsive buying. Not surprisingly, money avoiders have difficulty organizing financial statements and frequently struggle discussing money matters.

d). Money vigilant beliefs can help provide wealth protection. But this watchful approach can also prevent you from enjoying the benefits of achieving a positive state of financial wellness.

Are your money beliefs helping support your financial behaviors or are they creating roadblocks for your financial life plan?

If you are having trouble following a budget, eliminating debt, or saving, your money scripts may be holding you back. You can take this quiz, which is the Klontz Money Script Inventory (KMSI) if you want to complete your own self-assessment to examine your own money beliefs.

12. It’s never too late to rewrite your script: Beliefs That Guide Financial Life

The good news is that you have the opportunity to rewrite these money scripts. While money beliefs can be passed on from one generation to another, they do not have to be permanent.

Once you’ve identified your patterns of thinking about money, you can begin to examine how changing those beliefs can fundamentally improve your financial situation.

Then you will truly be ready to take mindful, deliberate steps to turning resolutions of change into reality.

Beliefs About Money Holding You Back From Financial Success

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