To achieve your goals, you have to do the work

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 27/12/2022 (728 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Dear Money Lady readers,

Do you unknowingly sabotage your prospects for the future?

As we head into the balance of this year and make plans for 2023, we all challenge ourselves to do better in the new year. Lose weight, get more fit, balance your budget, pay off consumer debt, save to buy a home… the list can be endless with our self-improvement goals. Whether you want to make changes to your health or your wealth, the methodology is the same. In fact, I guarantee that if you follow these three steps, you will lower your debts, increase your bank account, and maybe even improve your diet or lose weight all at the same time.

I need you to think about saving for your future like going into battle. We all know that spending too much will ruin your future, your security, and your ability to make choices. Since we are drawing similarities to your health, eating too much will make you fat, sick and possibly kill you. Saving and dieting are the same. They are both not easy and the media has made millions talking about how to eat less or spend less. There are countless diet books, finance books and endless tricks people want to convince you of to get you healthy or wealthy. The first step is something we are all capable of doing, yet only the most successful people do it.

• Do the work it takes to win — Now I am not saying that you can just put in a “good effort” — no, I want you to really do the work you know that is needed to succeed, no matter how it makes you feel or what the price. Your best is not good enough – this must be an all-or-nothing, winner-takes-all mentality that you won’t accept anything but victory at all costs. Let’s look at an example. You want to buy a home and need to save for the deposit – stop spending, get another job, cut back on things that are not a necessity, limit all personal expenses, make sacrifices and if necessary, have money automatically deducted from your paycheque to be transferred into your savings account before you can use it for everyday living. No one said it would be easy and it will feel uncomfortable – guaranteed. The fact is, you must endure some suffering to get ahead – we all know it, but most of us just don’t want to.

• Create momentum — You must believe you are powerful enough to accomplish your goals. Once created, momentum will reduce the suffering you experience and expedite your success. The stopping and starting destroys your desire to succeed so instead we must create momentum by embracing the little things that can fuel the wave of momentum and motivate us to continue. Take it one day at a time, remember step one – it will be uncomfortable, but making a change today, makes it just a little easier to push through tomorrow. Don’t go to the mall to be tempted to spend, put your credit cards in a drawer at home, carry only your budgeted cash allowance in your wallet, and once you’ve used it, then go without.

• Believe you can — Embrace this fight to financial freedom (or to be a weight-loss winner). You are a warrior that must keep fighting. Success in anything always follows the same path. You must keep going towards your goal, giving it everything you’ve got, with no excuses, no regrets, just your pure performance and positive energy. Even if nothing dramatic happens for a long time; keep going any way, and just as you’re about to give up, guaranteed your dream will become reality. We all know that everything in life has a price, and the bigger the benefit the more it costs. Remember, no one gets a free ride, and no one negotiates their way out of doing the work and enduring the pain. The reality is, everyone can talk a good game, but very few people follow through to conclusion because it’s tough – right? But you’re tough, too.

Constructing new ways of thinking and converting them into new and improved habits is no easy task. It can be the most difficult thing to do, especially as you age, as your habits become more firmly rooted. Most of us settle for mediocrity even though we are smart, educated, and talented. The potential to succeed is in us all, however, is rarely fulfilled, leaving many people frustrated with their lives as they age. The truth is, you are capable of great success, and the only trick is to do what the others don’t and achieve it. Send me your financial questions and I will try to help (info@askthemoneylady.ca). You can do this!

Of course, if any of my readers have questions about saving for the future or need specific advice about how to retire debt free and wealthy, you can always email me your questions on my website at: www.askthemoneylady.ca