Skip to main content

Locate the Emergency Exit Closest to Your Location

I remember the first time I got brave enough to go on a roller coaster. I was 12, and I was at a theme park with some friends. I was nervous. As the line snaked through artificial rocks and trees that were characteristic of the theme of the ride, there were numerous exits half-hearted thrill-seekers could take advantage of if their apprehension got the better of them. Before I got brave enough to make the entire journey, I would take advantage of one of those exits. More often than not, someone else would follow me out. Eventually my friends talked me into actually getting on the ride. Yes, I had a great time, and I’m glad I did it.

What does this experience have to do with finances, you ask? Hear me out. Sometimes it’s alright to go with the crowd, but sometimes, even when it’s hard or uncomfortable, you have to be willing to be the one to say, “No, I’m not doing that because it’s not in my best interest.” It’s possible that no one will go with you, but someone just might.

On your financial fitness quest, there will be things (and when I say things, I mean people) who try to detract you from your worthy goal of total independence. Like when you lose weight, even your best buddies might be jealous of your willpower and desire to change for the better. It might be subconscious or not, but it doesn’t matter. There will be things (people) who will attempt to sabotage you.

You need to have a plan, an exit strategy. List all the potential distractions and your responses to them ahead of time. Write them down. Make them positive. “I’m choosing to spend my money on something else,” instead of “I can’t afford that.” Make sure your children hear you use this kind of language. Practice in front of a mirror. When confronted with this type of situation, you will have already verbalized the response. And who knows, maybe someone else will take a cue from you and get off that insane roller coaster known as the Spending Spree.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

One More–Christmas Experiences Part II

Christmas is just a week away. Hopefully you’ve checked everything off your to-do list and can spend some quality time “experiencing” Christmas gifts with your family. Because, after all, your loved ones will be far more touched by how you made them feel than they will be with what you gave them. This week, I want to share with you my sister, Carey’s, family Christmas experience. “One Christmas, when my boys, now 18, 23 and 28, were little, we gave them an experience that is still talked about now. And it’s something so easily replicated that any family can do it, and it’s not too late to do it for Christmas (even ON Christmas) this year. We drove around our neighborhood and looked at all the homes decorated for the holiday. We took note of the addresses as we numbered them. We talked about what made each ornamented yards stand out. And at the end of the night, we voted for our favorite. I had my sons help me make some of our favorite holiday desserts and, in addition to taking p...
Post a Comment
Read more

More Financial Help

As part of the Discovery Family Coalition, we work with many agencies whose purposes are to help families in a myriad of areas. One of those areas is finances (that I get to chat with you about every week–yay!). And right now, families need all the financial help they can get, mine included. One of our fellow coalition partners, the Utah Department of Health & Human Services Child & Family Services, also does what it can to get help, including financial help, to families who need it. I happen to be on an email list, and this week I got an email with this information: “The Connect toCollect(C2C) program is focused on increasing low-income Utahans' receipt of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) by educating individuals about this federal program and linking them to high quality, free tax preparation." What is the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)? It's a tax credit that  helps low- to moderate-income workers and families get a tax break. If you qualify, you can us...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Marshmallow Experiment

In 1972, Stanford did a study about delayed gratification with children. It involved giant marshmallows and testing their patience.  You can see a short YouTube video about the study here . Basically, the kids who could sit alone with a giant marshmallow without eating it for a certain length of time were rewarded with a second giant marshmallow. Fun, huh? Some kids could be patient and reap the rewards; some could not. I was a small child when the study was conducted, and I wonder which side I might have been on. I HAVE learned to be pretty patient as an adult. One of the areas in which I’ve seen improvement is in finances. I have become a good money manager–I could be paid once annually and budget so that I won’t run out before year’s end, including having enough money to pay my own quarterly taxes–self-employed people do that. Speaking of taxes, I try not to overpay so that I qualify for a “refund,” because the government does not practice The Marshmallow Experiment. Huh? ...
Post a Comment
Read more