Achieving financial freedom is a goal for many people. Unfortunately, too many people fail to achieve it. It’s okay if you have been there before. There are still opportunities to switch camp but it is not immediate.
Asides from toxic behaviours that can derail your finances, people are burdened with increasing debt, financial emergencies, and other issues that thwart them from reaching their goals. Then there are unexpected events, such as a hurricane or earthquake—or pandemic—that overturn plans and reveal holes in their safety nets that weren’t visible before.
Trouble happens to nearly everyone, but just as important as breaking bad money habits is forming good ones is all-important.
Here are proven habits that can put you on the right path.
Set Life Goals:
What is financial freedom to you? A general desire for it is too vague a goal, so get specific. Write down how much you should have in your bank account, what the lifestyle entails, and at what age this should be achieved. The more specific your goals, the higher the likelihood of achieving them. The next thing to do is to count backwards to your current age and establish financial mileposts at regular intervals. Write it all down neatly and put the goal sheet at the very beginning of your financial binder.
Make a Budget:
Making a monthly household budget and sticking to it is the best way to guarantee that all bills are paid and savings are on track. It is also a regular routine that reinforces your goals and bolsters your resolve against the temptation to splurge.
Create Automatic Savings:
Pay yourself first and make full use of any matching contribution benefit. It is wise to have an automatic withdrawal for an emergency fund, which can be tapped for unexpected expenses, and an automatic contribution to a brokerage account or something similar.
Ideally, the money should be pulled the same day you receive your paycheck, so it never even touches your hands, avoiding temptation entirely.
Save a Percentage of Your Income:
Very few people save a substantial amount for the future. The percentage differs based on a person’s income strength and spending power. However, it should fall between 20 to 50 per cent of your income. The point here is to make some steep sacrifices so that you can put more of your wealth toward investments that are right for you.
Earn More:
“You have to have money to make money.” That’s an old saying that remains true to date. First, let’s address something. When you say that you don’t have any money and believe that, you’re already setting yourself up for failure. You have to change your mindset and believe that you can find a way to make more money. Get side hustles so you can earn more.
Invest in Yourself and Your Marketing:
Anything that will improve the way you work should be taken seriously and invested in. This is because it improves your chances of being chosen as the preferred professional. From personalized brochures to seminars, and other marketing materials, a coaching program with workshops, program advisors, and like-minded entrepreneurs. This is an investment that is rewarding.
Live Below Your Means:
Mastering a frugal lifestyle by having a mindset of living life to the fullest with less is not so hard. Indeed, many wealthy individuals developed a habit of living below their means before rising to affluence. This isn’t a challenge to adopt a minimalist lifestyle or a call to action to head to the dumpster with things you’ve hoarded over the years. Making small adjustments by distinguishing between the things you need and the things you want is a financially helpful habit to put into practice.
Take Care of Your Health:
Of what use is wealth when there’s no heath to enjoy it? The principle of proper maintenance also applies to the body. Invest in good health with regular visits to doctors and dentists, and follow health advice about any problems you encounter. Many problems can be helped, or even prevented, with lifestyle changes such as more exercise and a healthier diet. Some companies have limited sick days, making it a notable loss of income once those days are used up. Obesity and ailments make insurance premiums skyrocket, and poor health may force earlier retirement with lower monthly income.
Spend 30 minutes a day reading:
Rich people tend to read. They continue to teach and invest in themselves long after formal education is over. “Walk into a wealthy person’s home and one of the first things you’ll see is an extensive library of books they’ve used to educate themselves on how to become more successful,” self-made millionaire Steve Siebold writes in his book “How Rich People Think.”
Surround yourself with successful, high-earners:
Who you hang out with matters more than you may think. In fact, your net worth tends to mirror that of your closest friends, Siebold points out. We become like the people we associate with, and that’s why winners are attracted to winners.
Start Investing Now:
Bad stock markets can make people question this, but historically there has been no better way to grow your money than through investing. The magic of compound interest will help it increase exponentially over time, but you need a lot of time to achieve meaningful growth.
Try Real Estate:
Real estate investing may not make you wealthy overnight, but it can add zeros to your net worth in a shorter timeframe than many other traditional investments if you do it correctly. Just be sure to buy low, rehab smart, and sell fast. House flipping, as this process is called, is largely a math game, and significant profits can be made by those willing to take on the challenge.
Building wealth is a deliberate choice you have to make and then stick with it for the long haul.
Do you have any question or comment? Please share with us in the comment section.
