I was at an outdoor amphitheater a few nights ago, enjoying a concert under the stars and a nearly-full moon. We were on event chairs on a grassy hill, with the Fall evening cooling down as the evening progressed. Bundled up in various layers, I was struck by the richness that the evening held.

 

We were surrounded by people who were with friends and family, enjoying themselves, the entertainment, and the evening as much as I was.   It's so easy to feel gratitude when you're in those ideal surroundings. Gratitude is such a gracious emotion, giving life meaning and richness in its very presence.

 

It's harder to feel gratitude when we are dealing with every-day situations. The struggles, the small victories, and frequent frustrations. It takes a conscious act to look for those things every day that we can put on our gratitude list.   Those little victories, perhaps, or just a shared smile with someone passing.

 

It is truly hard to feel gratitude if you're not feeling in control of your money life. How can you see the positives if you're barely treading water? How can you feel the graciousness of appreciation if it all feels wrong somehow?

 

The article in this newsletter is about regaining that sense of control through the process of thinking of your money proactively. Getting out of reaction and into action. Action is the difference between being the master of your life or being the passenger. If you stay a passenger then you can expect more of the same. If you choose to be the master of your finances, then you can create the destination that you desire.

 

Gratitude is an active practice, looking for the sweetness that life holds. Being the master of your finances is an active practice as well, and makes gratitude even easier.

 

 

Susan

 

A special welcome to my new subscribers! I sincerely hope you will appreciate my articles and insights!

sb  

 

 

Does it ever seem like gremlins are running your money  life? That just as you're getting ahead, an unexpected bill arrives to take away your sense of safety? Your money feels out of control, running its own race toward a finish line that doesn't look desirable.

 

Most of my clients are accidentally putting themselves at risk. They don't intend to do it, but they have slipped into reaction toward their money life rather than being proactive. The end result, over time, is that debt keeps increasing no matter how much is paid against it. They can't save money, or at least not as much as they need to be saving. The mailbox, whether tangible or virtual, becomes the enemy, threatening with bills that there isn't enough money for.

 

Proactivity means being informed and reviewing the alternatives before spending. When you consider expenditures ahead of time, you're prepared and can take steps to head off a tight month. You can change appointments, postpone an activity, or choose in advance a less expensive alternative.

 

Proactivity has several facets in your financial process. In a previous newsletter (Planning Means Guilt-Free Spending) I discussed the value of planning, and that's certainly one of the keys of proactivity. Planning can be addressed as an annual event, where the expenses are taken as a yearly number and divided by 12, creating the annual budget.

 

The trouble with this concept is that there are very few average months. Even if an annual budget is in place, a spending plan needs to be considered for each individual month, taking into account the events, experiences and expenditures that make it different from the preceding month(s).

 

Another facet of proactivity is having a system in place for irregular expenses. These are those pesky (and sometimes large) expenses that happen at least annually but not monthly. If you haven't developed a system for these to be funded as a monthly allocation, then it is just a matter of time before they occur and upset your sense of security.

 

For instance, a car needs a large servicing, or a special event happens. If you haven't proactively allocated for these expenses, there are three choices: use savings meant for something else, use credit cards, or throw off the rest of your month's cash flow to pay for them. These expenses are the primary reason that people stay on the money merry-go-round (up, down, up, down, and not getting anywhere).

 

Another facet of being proactive is to corral specific funds in specific accounts. Spending money should be separated from the money that is pre-allocated for bills/fixed monthly expenses, for irregular expenses, and for other savings.

 

If these pre-allocated amounts are not separated out it looks like there's plenty of money to spend on flexible expenses. When these pre-allocated amounts are separated out, you get a true perspective of what is available for spending. This flexible spending account is the only one that you have to monitor closely because it's the one which you would have debit card access and would use regularly for the daily errands and tasks.

 

Proactive Actions to Take

1. Plan each month taking into consideration all of the specific elements that will occur that month: events, activities, holidays, appointments, and want-list items that would be in addition to the regular monthly expenses.
2. Tame your irregular expenses by getting them down on paper. Check the previous year's costs, and get a monthly number that needs to be allocated for these to cover all the irregular bumps in your cash flow.
3. Separate the pre-allocated money from the spending money so that you are operating with a true sense of what's available.

   

These three actions will change your money life. They will make it predictable and reliable, and give you peace of mind. You can take the actions today that will change your tomorrows. You can ask for any expert help you may need to assure that you'll get to the tomorrows you envision. Action is the key.

 

For over twenty years I have helped individuals and couples transform their money lives using these actions as well as other ideas that make a big difference. When you are ready to take action and accelerate your progress toward the money life of your dreams, please email or call me. Together in a complimentary strategy session, we can explore how to take the actions needed to change your money life.

 

 

 

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