When it comes to money, we all have a weakness. Some of us may have more than one. For most, that weakness involves spending, for others it can involve being too stingy or greedy.
There is nothing wrong with having money weaknesses. None of us are perfect so we shouldn’t expect to be perfect when it comes to handling money. The problem is that most of us give in to our weakness almost every single time we face a money decision.
My first money weakness is tending to focus too much on saving. In fact, I would call it hoarding. I am naturally a saver, so I get my “money high” by transferring funds from my checking to my savings or money market accounts. Fortunately, this has not affected my ability to give or donate to causes I believe are worthwhile, however, it does tend to make me overdo it when it comes to monitoring my accounts and making plans for my financial future.
My second money weakness is food. I’m not necessarily a “foodie” but I love good food. I won’t hesitate to drop $50 or $60 on a nice meal for me and Natalie. Going out to eat is something I just love to do, but I can’t afford to do it as often as I’d like (by afford I mean my wallet and my health).
So, what now? How do we defeat our money weaknesses? The next step is to sit down and make a plan. Most of financial planning involves being able to define reality and make a plan on how to improve. When I recently had my revelation that I spent too much on eating out, I decided to cut back on the amount of cash I carried (I would go through $10 and $1 bills faster than you would believe). Since I knew that most of the time when I went out I used a $10 bill, I cut back on those and carried only a couple of 20s. Because who is gonna break a $20 on a tea from Chick-fil-A or a cup of coffee? Not this guy.
What is your money weakness? How are you going to conquer it so you can move on to a better financial future? Tonight, sit down and think about your financial situation and where you feel like you are bleeding (or even hemorrhaging). Then, create a simple plan that can help turn your situation around. I promise you will not regret it.
swj
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