The Sunday Mail
Raise your hand if you’ve wasted money this week. You’re not alone. “We often think that simply because we’re adults, we should know how to manage our money, and that just isn’t the case,” says financial expert Tiffany Aliche, aka “The Budgetnista” and Prudential’s financial wellness advocate. “Most of us, in fact, need expert guidance when it comes to achieving financial wellness, and that’s perfectly natural.”
Your daily habits, goals, and even your attitude toward money might be sabotaging your financial success.
Trolling the sales: It may sound counter-intuitive, but hitting the sales can sometimes actually backtrack your budget, according to The Motley Fool study. Out of the top ten reasons cited for overspending, two include sales: discounted items or “one-time only” flash sales that can, ironically, lead to more spending. (Chalk it up to the “I can’t afford not to buy it” syndrome. We’ve all been there.)
Feeling hopeless: Financial wellness isn’t just about cash. Your attitude and behaviours toward money can sometimes be the biggest barrier standing in the way. Once you spiral down that rabbit-hole of shame, it can be hard to climb out of it.
Forgetting about “found” money: Did someone pay it forward to you in the coffee shop line? Find a $20 on the street? Get a long-forgotten rebate you sent in for months ago?
“I call it UM, or Unexpected Money,” says Aliche. “That’s when you need to seize the opportunity: Transfer that money right away to your savings or bill accounts. You’d be surprised how much it adds up with no effort on your part.” And that technique goes for any time you do something like skipping your usual latte. “It’s a way to remind yourself you’re not saying no to coffee, you’re saying yes to saving,” she says.
Being passive: Returning items. Calling your cable company to get a better rate. Negotiating a bank fee. Sure, these things take time.
“But think about it this way, say you spend ten minutes with a bank to overturn a $35 fee. That’s a massive return on your time that many can’t get for an hourly rate. Spending that time can really pay off.
Wasting food: The number-one money-waster, according to the Motley Fool survey, is throwing away leftover food. Part of the reason for this phenomenon, says a recent study, is that people are misleading food labels.
Doing too much, too soon: Let’s say you have ten financial habits you’d like to turn around, take it one month at a time. For example, “say ‘this month, I’m going to tackle those unnecessary subscriptions, and next month I’ll focus on impulse purchases.’ Just remember not to get discouraged when you hit snags. Give yourself a break and realise it’s a process.
Equating a budget with the word “no”: Let’s face it: The word “budget” isn’t exactly a warm-and-fuzzy word.
“Most people think of a budget as a say-no plan and I encourage them to think of it as a say-yes plan,” says Aliche. Saving for vacation? Anytime you skip that girlfriend’s brunch, don’t think of it as saying “no”. “Think of it as saying yes to Morocco instead. That simple tweak in how you think about it will really make a difference in reaching your goal,” she says.
Succumbing to the “keeping up” disease: It’s an age-old quote: Keeping up with Joneses. “Except back then, it was just your next-door neighbour you were trying to keep up with, while now, in the era of social media, everyone is your neighbour once you open your phone,” says Aliche.
“And with that comes a sense of ‘not keeping up.’ Just remember, that person might be struggling more than they portray.” Don’t subscribe to the keeping-up temptation.
Not putting it in writing: Penning down your goals can bump your odds for success. When you write something down it becomes reality, and it doesn’t take much time—you can do it in 15 minutes, yet it’s such an often-overlooked step. — Readers Digest .
