If solid money habits don’t come naturally to you – stop for a minute – and recognize you are in the majority. Take it a step further, which group to you fit in?
1) Do nothing. Watch your savings stay in double digits or keep getting statements in the mail that stay UNOPENED. 2) Try and do it yourself. Get started. Get stuck. Get confused. Move forward at a snail’s pace. 3) You have created a money success system around you that is positive and leads to results.
If #3 sounds like the group you would like to fit in, try one of these money exercises to get you there.
Write a letter to a friend describing what your money life looks like one year from now. It should only be positive. Even if you think you are in a negative situation, describe where you would like to be on a positive basis. Even if you can’t fathom that it will come true, try and shoot for the moon! For example:
Dear Susan, I finally decided to take charge of my finances this past year. I felt very inspired by my current financial situation and wanted to understand what was going on with my spending and investments. This past year I was finally able to increase my savings by at least $1,000 a month. I cut back in areas I didn’t really need and spent smarter in other areas. I put my savings on automatic pilot so I didn’t even have to think about saving each month. I finally learned about mutual funds and regularly go on Morningstar.com to check their performance. It is a great feeling knowing my money is in my hands and I know what to do with it. I am also getting ready to buy an apartment and know that I will have enough saved for a down-payment soon. Best, Galia
Put your money letter on line. Check out futureme.org. You can write a letter to yourself and even create goals. The site then delivers your letter or goals on dates that you choose. I’m going to send myself a goal of contributing a certain dollar amount to my SEP IRA within the next 6 months.