Money Musings đź’ A life-changing goal reframe
What you’ll find below:
Reflection: A life-changing goal reframe
Money Move: Learning from money fails
Reel of the Week: 5 last minute budget-friendly gift ideas
When it comes to our goals, we often focus on the “doing.” For example, to save $1,000 by next December, I’ll set aside $20 per week. Or to finally start budgeting I’ll put a plan together and check in on it once a month.
While this can work well and I’m a big proponent of action (hello weekly money moves!), even our best laid plans and momentum eventually fade.
What gives?
I’ve found that having a specific goal-setting mindset can make all the difference.
Instead of asking “what do I need to do to achieve this goal?” ask yourself, “who do I need to be to achieve this goal?”
In Atomic Habits, James Clear talks about someone who reached their health goals by asking themselves “what would a healthy person do?” in any given situation. Would they take the stairs or elevator? What would they choose for lunch? How often would they go to the gym?
We can apply the same strategy to our money lives. đź’°
As you approach your next money decision (which for most of us happens daily) ask yourself, “what would a financially savvy person do?”
You can also make it more specific. If you want to purchase a home, “what would a homeowner do?” Or if you want a raise, “what would someone who’s paid what they’re worth do?”
How would they act? How would they show up? The changes we make can be small yet meaningful. It’s a powerful exercise.
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MONEY MOVE OF THE WEEK
NEW YEAR’S PLANNING SERIES - STEP 3: LEARN FROM SETBACKS.
We’re onto step #3 of 4 in our New Year’s planning series. If you missed steps #1 and #2, you can find them here and here.
Today, we’re going to take a bit of time to reflect and learn from our setbacks. As someone who loves goals and forward momentum, I can easily fall into the trap of moving onto the next thing without reflecting on what worked and what didn’t.
While this can feel like a “productive” mindset, without a reflective pause, I miss out on so much of the wisdom and learning I could garner from my mistakes.
Before we kick off 2024, take an hour and think about what went well in your financial life this year and what you’d like to look different. This can be specific to your money or more broadly how you’d like your life to look (because life costs money!).
How did you spend your time?
How did you spend your money?
What progress did you make towards your goals?
How does all that feel when you’re looking at it? What would you like to do differently in 2024?
For the things you’d like to change (could be the mistakes you made), what might get in the way and how can you set yourself up for success?
I’d love to hear how this reflection goes! Hit reply and let me know.
From here, we have a lot more clarity to set an intention and make and achieve our goals for 2024. 🎊
your weekly money wins
Here are all the amazing money moves you made this week đź‘Źđź‘Źđź‘Ź
AmyB: My brokerage investments are almost back to where they were in January '22! Hoping to surpass this month!
Dani: I put in an offer on my first house!
Rachel: Did a bunch of research on electric vehicle purchase incentives that could save us $15,000 on a new car
Melissa: I made a quilt using scrap fabrics rather than spending more money on more fabric 🙌🏼
Andrea S: $0 spending during the weekdays!
Ariel F: 3 pay checks this month!!!!
Patty L: Budgeted my bonus to cover needs, debt and fun where before I would have just spent
Rachel: I made a lateral move at work and was still able to negotiate over a 3% raise!
Jessica T: Even with a time crunch, I got all my meal prep done for my work days! Saving on takeout!
Nikki: Made enough in my part time practice to cover my student loan payment!