How do I start getting control of my money Judith? When people ask me what a Money Coach does, these are the most common questions I get.
- Should I note all my debts?
- Could I get a second job?
- I hope I’ll win the lottery?
All good places to start, but hoping for a lottery win is just not realistic. To seriously get control you should start with a list of your goals that deal with money. Create three categories: short (within a year), medium (up to 5 years) and long term (6+ years). Second, be honest with yourself, use real numbers and real goals. When you put a cost to the goal and the date you want to achieve it, you’ve created the framework for your financial plan – the best tool to help to gain control of your money. It’s as simple of a writing down a list.
Don’t yo-yo
A lot of times people have debt with their credit cards (aka debt cards) and their lines of credit. They continue to pay them down. Hooray! Then the debt builds up again. The cycle continues with getting them paid down and building them up … and so it goes. When you are caught in this yo-yo cycle you never see the light at the end of the tunnel. You have no incentive to change your behaviour. In the end, debt continues to swirl around you unchecked.
A realistic approach to money control
Start here. List all your debt in a “Get Out of Debt” spreadsheet. Carefully follow your financial plan with your goals as the priorities. If you stick to the plan, and manage what you spend and how you save, you’ll have control of your money. You can plan for the time when you are debt-free. It’s not easy to stick to a strict spending saving regime. I’ve told you how I feel about budgets, but I also know life happens. Finally, when you are tempted to add to your debt, add the numbers to your spreadsheet and see how much longer it will take you to dig out of this hole. You might decide it’s just not worth it.
Listing your goals and being frank about your debt can be a very powerful motivation for getting control of your money. I am Canada’s Money Coach, and I can help you get out of debt and stay there. So give me a call and let’s discuss your debt-free future. 613-875-5834
