My Financial Wellness Guide – Part III

“I have lost and loved and won and cried myself to the person I am today.”
― Charlotte Eriksson, Empty Roads & Broken Bottles; in search for The Great Perhaps

 

In the first two parts of My Financial Wellness Guide, I wrote about the importance of keeping good records. An important step towards healthy personal finance is knowing yourself and taking account of all of the areas of your life. Keeping accurate records and important documents will become even more critical over time.

There are some records that might be a bit more challenging to gather and file. Those are the experiences we’ve had in our lives, that have shaped the ideas and beliefs we have today. Some run so deep that it’s difficult to pinpoint when they first formed in our minds.

Take time to contemplate on your thoughts and ideas around personal finance. Write them down. Did these come from your own experience? If you had a negative experience with a particular person or company, were you able to go back through and understand what was the root cause?

How many phrases have you heard, believed they must be true and never took the time to form your own understanding around them? What have your experiences led you to believe? Be aware of the language others use around financial management – words of guilt, shame, suffering. What language do you use?

The way we view financial management can be as deep as our spiritual convictions. Many of those beliefs have never been tested or validated, yet we are willing to lose friendships, opportunities and personal growth over them. Be aware of what you need to learn and do your own research through a variety of sources.

Know what you value and want to accomplish in life. Filter your financial decisions through that lens. Every single day. Track your actions and choices. Are they getting you closer to what you want? Adjust as needed. Build your own path.