What goals have you set yourself for 2013? Was being better with your finances one of them? Many of us wake up on January 1st with the hope and aim of making this year better, that this will be the year that I achieve… and then by mid- January many of us are back to our old ways. But, the lifestyle changes you want to achieve don’t have to be short lived. Try the simple steps in this article and see how they could lead to a lifetime of change.
So, how do we go about achieving this? Many of us will start the year by setting out a budget hoping that we have the will power to stick to it, yet by February, with the lure of the post-Christmas sales, our resolve has already dis-appeared and the will power we hoped would get us there diminished.
So instead of starting again and trying to achieve these goals we deem ourselves useless at sticking to a budget and revert back to the way things were before, declaring that budgeting is not for us.
It’s not that you don’t have the will power, you do, it’s just that you aren’t accessing enough of it. Think of it like this, at the moment you are only accessing two batteries worth of will power therefore, it’s easy to see how we run out of charge but, you have the ability to access a whole power station worth of will power, you just need to know how.
So how do you get access to your internal power station for long term control of your finances? You need to connect to your true desires and work out what’s really important to you.
For many reading this article, what’s important is not a new pair of shoes, a new dress or TV, it’s more likely that we want to spend more time with loved ones, have more time to relax or take a holiday. But a holiday will cost thousands and may seem too hard to achieve so instead we go for instant gratification, we buy the shoes that only cost $100.
That’s because identifying what you want is only half the job. In terms of accessing your power it’s like laying wire half way to the power station and stopping. To get all the way you need to link your true desires with your values.
A Value is the why.
For example:
What I want is to work from home and therefore have more time to be with my baby.
Value: I want to be able to form a deep loving connection with my baby and to provide him/her with a secure and loving home. Therefore, my values are love, freedom and security.
Result: I don’t even want to visit the shops anymore. I feel happy without spending money and can effortlessly control my money. I have a happy and secure baby whom I enjoy a loving connection with.
Your Value i.e. your Why, must be something deeply important to you such as making a loving connection, security and freedom.
Decide on a goal and link it to a deep value of yours, you’ll then find control and power over money that you’ve never experienced before. You can now lay the wire all the way to your power station leaving you fully charged!
So, here are the steps to charging up your will power, write out the answers to the following 6 questions:
1) What do you really want? What would make you happy? E.g. is it taking time off to be with your new baby?
2) What’s important about what you want? E.g. you want a loving bond with your child. If you are struggling to identify your value (your why), look up a values list on the internet and see if any of them fit.
3) To help flesh out your values, think about the having the opposite of what you want. E.g. Why not go back to work early and let someone else take care of the baby? Spend the year working without a holiday, carry on renting, continue procrastinating and avoid being promoted.
4) What are the consequences of not achieving your goals? E.g. will you have to go back to work earlier than you desire? Will you not have the money to provide a secure future for your family, or will your freedom of choice be limited?
5) Write out your day with you achieving what you want. Describe how you would feel, what you would do. If you can, spend time cutting out pictures that represent what you want.
6) Now start every day looking for ways to achieve each goal. Keep what you want in mind as you go about your day. Imagine you living the day you want.
That’s it. To many this may seem obvious and too basic. Don’t let that trick you into not doing it.
You can now be empowered when it comes to budgeting and use this knowledge to create excitement when it comes to managing your finances, as each dollar you save now becomes an investment in what is important to you. Managing your money can now leave you with positive feelings rather than negative, despondent feelings.
FREE confidential chat and find out how you can gain control of your finances. For more information the visit our website http://www.wealthlane.com.au
You will be glad you did, getting controls of your finances is one of the best things you can do for yourself.
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