Getting your finances in ORDER pt 4

Moving from neutral to financially secure

Last week we talked about getting from a deficit financial status to a neutral status. The neutral status is where your expenses is always equal to your income. In effect you always spend all you make. There is no money left for savings, much less investments. Living like this is called living on the edge. Any emergency or unexpected expense becomes a huge headache for the family or individual. 

The focus of today's post is to suggest ways on how to organize your expenses in order to leave some spaces and release some funds for savings and later investments. Here are a few guidelines.

Avoid impulse buying

One of the most devastating habits that prevents people from saving money is their inability to resist the impulse to buy. Unless you gain mastery over such impulses you will always struggle to save and therefore invest. Here is how to win the war over impulse buying;

 1. Always make a list and stick to it.

Never got to the mall, shop or supermarket without a list of items to buy. Make sure you have one and stick to just those items.

 2. Avoid taking your debit or credit cards to shop.

 Pay in cash and always only for items on the list. 

3. Stop trying to impress people. 

Most people do not really care. Trying to keep up with the Jones' is what keeps a lot of people incapable of saving or investing their money. Stick to quality and not just quantity. Be content and learn satiety. 

Delay Impulse buying

If you cannot completely avoid it then delay it. Whenever a strong desire to buy comes up, hold off for at least a week. If the desire still persists, then it might be a need after all not just a want or simply a desire. Most of the time, the need to buy reduces and even completely disappear after the week. 

Once you are able to bring the desire to buy on impulse under control, you make it easier to work towards financial security.

Next week we will discuss several other ways you can free up some money on your expenses and get on your way to financial security and later financial freedom.