Don’t let your emotions get the better of you!
Posted on March 15, 2022 by Richa Puri, One of Thousands of Money and Finance Coaches on Noomii.
The biggest cause of you falling off the wagon while saving towards your financial goals is your emotions towards money & yourself!
Everyday you are being told to set financial goals for yourself. Make plans to achieve those goals. Stick to your plans.
However, despite setting goals and making plans using a well-researched financial planning software or a well-known financial expert, you keep falling of the wagon.
Sometimes it is –
That impulsive purchase of shoes, bag or that expensive dress
The splurge on wining & dining out with friends
That unplanned weekend-getaway/ overseas vacation
That unplanned expensive gift for a loved one
And many more such incidents, that keep happening over and over again. Every time this happens you try to find a person or the situation to hold responsible for it –
The salesman was really good
My friends/ colleagues wanted to go out
I desperately needed a break, life is so stressful
I love the person so I had to give him/ her a good gift
And the list goes on…
However, you soon realise, these expenses are making you fall short on your saving/ investing goals quite often. Then you make promises to yourself that you will plan better for these expenses and reduce them so you can stick your financial plan.
But alas! That doesn’t happen…
You keep falling off the wagon repetitively, because you haven’t tried to address the underlying cause behind these unplanned spends! It is your emotions, towards money & yourself, that are affecting all your money decisions.
Go back to those time when you overspent on something or spent big amount on an unplanned thing. Write down your emotions from atleast 3 such incidents. How were you feeling – overwhelmed, anxious, worried, fearful? What exact thoughts did you have just before going ahead and making that spend? Was your decision reason driven or emotion driven?
Yes, you have come to the right conclusion, all those unplanned decisions were driven by emotions. These emotions don’t arise out of thin air, they are a result of your repetitive thoughts. Hence, the only way to permanently change your emotions is by changing the thoughts.
