Tame The Financial Beast

Are holiday bills surprising you? Are you hoping that if you ignore your finances long enough, maybe they will fix themselves?

Let's liken our finances to a garden. If we neglect the garden, weeds will grow and take over. The garden gets so bad we don't even want to look at it! But, with a little maintenance and tending the garden becomes a joy.

The first step towards creating a joyful financial garden is learning to save.

Why bother saving?Before we delve into the often scary place of finding out how much of the money is going in and out, we need to find a motive to dig deep.

You need to know why you want to save mo'ney. Do you want to own your home, reach financial independence, get a vacation home on an island? Or do you simply want financial peace so you're not worrying about money?

Once you get that vision of what you want to achieve you will have the motivation to examine your finances.

Financial Dream.

How much will it cost to fulfill your vision? Work out some figures, and write down your estimation. This is your financial goal.

When do you want to achieve your financial dream? 5 years, 10 years, 20 years? Now you know not only how much you need by when. This tells you how much you'll need to save each year to reach your goal in your required timeframe.

Look at your finances.

You can't bury your head in the garden sand of your finances or you will end up with pricker bushes and weeds the size of trees.

You know what you want, when you want it and how much you want to save. Now you get to see if you can save that much. Look at your in'come and expenses. Do you have more coming in, then going out? If you do, you have a great start. If not, we'll look at how to create savings in a minute.

Save first.

The biggest mistake people make is to say "I will save whatever is left over." Don't try this at home. Your expenses will expand to use up any money that is there.

Instead, put money in savings first. Many companies allow you to automatically deduct money to put into a savings account. You won't miss it, because you'll never see it.

Now you get to play the "How Can I Live on the Rest" game. Challenge yourself and be innovative. Are we having fun yet?

I can't save that much!

If you can't save as much as your goal, don't sweat it. Start saving whatever you can. The psychological impact of bringing in more than you spend will help motivate you to save even more. And it feels great! Starting with $10 a month is at least something!

Prune those expenses.

The easiest and quickest way to save more is to cut your expenses.

First, get rid of cre'dit card de'bt. If you can't use your card responsibly cut it up or put it in a block of ice in the freezer.

Next, list everything you spend money on. For each item ask if this is something that you can cut with no pain. Or will it cause a little pain. Or will it feel like taking off a limb?

Beside each item, list how much you would save each month by eliminating or slashing that cost by 50%. That number is what you could save for your dream. Imagine what you could do with that cash!

Some suggestions for cutting expenses.

Get books and magazines from the library instead of buying them

Get rid of things that don't add to your life

Cancel the gym membership and workout with a buddy

Ditch the cell phone till you can start saving

Think about your car- can you get around without it? Do you really need a second car? Can you replace your newer one with an older car? The car is one of the biggest expenses when you include repairs, insurance and depreciation. Selling a car could give you thousands of dollars in savings. Rent a cheaper place! At least until you have 6-12 months of living expenses stashed away in a savings account. If the mortgage is killing you - give yourself a break. Talk to a financial planner or accountant about selling the place and renting cheaply, or renting out your expensive place and renting cheaply.

Eat out less. Go out for coffee instead of lunch with your friends. Or invite them over to your place.

* * *

OK - there's a blueprint to start taking financial responsibility, and to begin to enjoy your financial garden, instead of dreading being attacked in it! And coaches - feel free to use these ideas with your clients.

David Wood is a personal and business coach, and an original founder of the International Coach Academy - a global coach training school.

Looking to become a life coach? Get your free copy of '50 Power Questions' to use with your life coaching clients, and to take charge of your own life. Download here:http://www.solutionbox.com/freedownload.htm

And find out how these ordinary life coaches are making $30,000 to $1.4 million per year! Finally they share their secrets: http://www.10SuperCoaches.com

More Resources

Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exiting

More Coaching Information:

Related Articles

Eureka! I've Found It!
OK, so it wasn't quite that big of a deal. But I did find the "T" that mysteriously escaped from the word "not" in one of my articles a few months ago.
Coaching: YOU Can Improve Your Organizations Performance
GOOD BUSINESS COACHING: Clearly, the right kind of coaching can alter a team's or an organization's performance. The implication for business is that if you create a climate of coaching in any organization, you can produce performance that exceeds your expectations - and you won't have to change the people to do so.
Communicating Anger Compassionately
Whether it is irritability or unmitigated rage, anger is an emotion everyone knows about. Unfortunately, few people have been taught how to mange this feeling in an assertive and compassionate way.
Whats Wrong with Life Coaching?
As a Life Coach I quickly identified most individuals wanted to achieve a particular goal or ambition and tried it themselves without success, and unfortunatley were still reluctant to get any help. So, I started 'A Life Coaching' a company which provides individuals with the tools, skills and processes to Life Coach themselves.
Live With An Attitude Of Gratitude
Imagine for a moment one of those nights when you just can't fall asleep and you have to get up early the next morning for a very important meeting of which you are the keynote speaker. Your alarm clock goes off early in the morning waking you from what little sleep you had.
Business Coaching Legacy: Reflections on What You Want to Leave Behind?
Updating my will has been on my mind for quite some time now. Life circumstances change, kids grow-up, financial situations changes.
Plug in Your Systems for Success
Have you ever noticed that so many of us who work diligently and ethically rarely achieve our objectives? And, why is it that those who-seemingly-work half as hard and half as long experience one success after another?The answer is twofold; successful people succeed because they implement proven, systems for success. Secondly, successful people have mastered the art of making time, work for them.
Addiction to Blame
Allen consulted with me because his wife of 18 years had threatened to leave him if he didn't stop blaming her all the time. He admitted to frequently blaming her in a variety of situations.
Media Underload! The Stress Reducing Psych-Diet
The war, taxes, the economy, increased health problems, crime on the rise, overwhelming divorce rate, corruption in corporate America, and, oh yes, Janet at the Super Bowl! Where does it end? With so much going wrong, whats going right in the world?It is times like these that I find myself mired down in the muck spewing forth from every media outlet. Like water dripping on a sponge, this negativity begins to seep in and pervade my thoughts and influence my reactions to the world around me.
Walt Disney, the Inspiration to Form a Better Life?
You, like many others, may have come to this article because you want more from life. In this sense, you and I may be alike because we're searching for greater happiness and a stronger sense of fulfillment.
Miscommunication - Root Cause of Problems?
People of two opposing ideas can stir up argumentsand fights. It's that situation when one thinkshe has the right concept while the other one also believes he has the proper notion.
Your Personal Treasure Chest
Sometimes it is helpful to review several of the basic components of THE ENCHANTED SELF. That's what I've decided to do this time.
How to Jump-start Your Emotional Health
You've probably heard the expression: "It's not what you're eating. It's what's eating you!" This well-known saying reminds us that the thoughts we entertain can have an impact on our health.
The Best Things in Life Are Rarely Things
Have you ever noticed this to be true?The best things in life for me are those things are not things at all. People and experiences make the biggest mark: a wonderful relationship, time with family, or a fantastic vacation that stays in my mind for years.
Key Questions for a Coaching Conversation
There are 2 key skills that coaches need to be truly effective, the ability to listen (often for what is missing rather than what is said) and the ability to ask the right question at the right time.Now in reality there are no 'right' questions, there are however some very good, and fairly generic questions that when asked which can make a significant difference to the way in which a coaching interaction progresses.
A Fresh Look at the Choices We Make
We are frequently held back from making future plans or reaching goals based on the perceived wrongness of choices we've made in the past. I want to give you something to think about.
How To Improve Your Selling Skills -- With Coaching Skills
But people love being coached. It's respectful and considerate of their needs.
Are You Worth Investing In?
Do you realise that if you're green you're growing and if you're ripe you're rotten? So says Winston Marsh, Business Marketing Guru in his recent newsletter.Here's an excerpt from it .
Mentors and Coaches: How to Find a Great Mentor
A career coach or mentor is a person who can guide you with the benefit of their experience. He or she may be someone more senior from within your organisation or someone external to your organisation who has been successful in the field or skills you want to develop.
How to Make $100,000 Dollars as a Personal Trainer - Part C for Client!
My name is Greg Ryan. For the last twenty years I have counseled thousands of personal trainers, fitness directors and gym owners on how be successful in the health and fitness industry.